{"id":300,"date":"2020-11-27T16:08:24","date_gmt":"2020-11-27T21:08:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/performingartslegacy.org\/kochbill\/?p=300"},"modified":"2021-12-11T15:24:16","modified_gmt":"2021-12-11T20:24:16","slug":"godspell-three-cultural-translations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/performingartslegacy.org\/kochbill\/godspell-three-cultural-translations\/","title":{"rendered":"GODSPELL \u2013 Three Cultural Translations"},"content":{"rendered":"[aesop_gallery pslightbox=”on” transition=”crossfade” width=”65%” galleryType=”thumbnail” id=”306″]\n

\u00a0GODSPELL \u2014 Theatre\u00a0 (1981)
\n<\/b>for Equity Library Theater, NYC<\/span><\/p>\n

RESEARCH\/The 4 Gospels & The Script:
\n<\/b><\/u>Five years after the success of MAGGIE FLYNN, I was invited to Stage Direct & Choreograph my second show for Equity Library Theater: John-Michael Tebelak & Stephen Schwartz\u2019s GODSPELL.\u00a0 I was thrilled, having seen and enjoyed the original production Off-Broadway.\u00a0 My mentor Ralph Haugen had taught me to always investigate the original source when directing an adaptation, so (though I wanted no connection with religion at the time) I sat down and read the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.\u00a0 Surprisingly, it was my first sense of this spiritual man Jesus of Nazareth different from modern Christianity.\u00a0 And I quickly realized that this spiritual leader taught the same kind of principles my Theatre mentor Ralph had taught me about producing good Theatre.<\/span><\/p>\n

JOHN-MICHAEL TEBELAK
\n<\/b><\/u>My concept came quickly, and producer George Wojtusik encouraged me to call John-Michael Tebelak and ask his permission to visually translate the show.\u00a0 Rather than its original circus theme, my concept was that the cast were a group of \u201cin-between-shows\u201d actors in an empty theater. John-Michael loved this idea and commended me for wanting to make the show more connecting with my Theatre audience now, sharing how he had written the original to share his spiritual beliefs with his fellow students at Carnegie-Mellon University.\u00a0<\/span>Later, he came to see our production (bringing us his traditional bunch of colored balloons!) and was thrilled and joyed by our presentation, highly praising me, our incredible cast, staff, and crew,<\/span><\/p>\n

AUDITIONS
\n<\/b><\/u>I almost always ask performers to do improv in call backs because it reveals so much about them as persons as well as actors\u2014and most people have fun!\u00a0 So all finalists were called to a group afternoon (re ensemble requirements of the show) and they were told the cast would be announced at the end of the callbacks. Two favorite memories:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDay By Day\u201d<\/strong>\u2014There were five women, each of whom, based on auditions, would have been fine in this slot.\u00a0 How do we choose?\u00a0 \u201cOne of the women,\u201d<\/em> I said \u201cAlynne Amkraut has auditioned for me 4 times before, always makes the finals, is always prepared, works well with the other performers and accompanist <\/i>(big scoring points for me!)\u00a0has a neat sense of humor, takes direction but will voice her own ideas.\u201d<\/i>\u00a0After we announced Alynne as \u2018\u2019cast,\u2019\u2019 I told everyone this story about the importance of reputation, whether you are cast in this <\/em>production or not.<\/p>\n

Jesus<\/strong>\u2014There were three finalists for the role of Jesus. They were all good candidates. The final improv of the afternoon I asked each Jesus candidate to simply get the 20+ candidates to do an activity with them.\u00a0 The first actor was charming and had leadership, quickly enlisting \u201ddisciples\u201d to help until everyone was involved. The second actor was very angry about something and got everyone to stand in a circle, hold hands, then cross one leg over their held hands, then told them to get out of it themselves. The tension in the room was like molasses! The third candidate simply walked quietly around the room, wandering among the mostly-seated-on-the-floor smoldering folk \u2026 The studio was a huge room in an old Greenwich Village building, with very tall windows which were admitting the bright afternoon sunlight, casting huge panes of light on the wooden floor \u2026 The third Jesus candidate finally stooped at one pane of sunlight-on-floor and began \u201cscooping and drinking\u201d the sunlight as though it were water from a pool\u2026 then an actress joined him, also \u201cscooping and drinking\u201d\u2026 gradually others joined until they were surrounding the \u201cpool,\u201d at which point other performers began the ritual at other \u201cpools\u201d of sunlight\u2014it was thrilling to witness! And thus the third candidate, Scott Bakula, then new in town, became our Jesus\u2014and his performances were harbingers of the incredible career yet to come for him\u2014especially winning the lead in (an actor\u2019s dream!) the TV series \u201cQuantum Leap.\u201d And Scott truly led our wonderful, talented, hard-working, fun cast!<\/p>\n

A HISTORY OF THEATRE!
\n<\/b><\/u>Our production was an informal History of Theatre\u2014every song or scene was a different theatrical style\u2014Rock, Gospel, Japanese Noh, Shakespearean, et al.\u2014and we all learned and developed with the show and the research.\u00a0 The cast ate it up!\u00a0 And our audiences found it very exciting also.\u00a0 And GODSPELL was still intact.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDAY BY DAY\u201d\u2014A Number For Everyone
\n<\/b><\/u>Allyne Amkraut (later Krull), the talented, dependable actress\/singer\/dancer who won the role on her reputation was brilliant in this number.\u00a0 She sang the first verse in sign language, then each group that added on would repeat the authentic signing, while the sign movements of the previous group grew, verse by verse, until the movements were pure dance by the end. Plus the last verse Alynne manipulated a \u201cbouncing ball\u201d to highlight the words on a large chart so the audience could sing along.\u00a0 Everyone had a great time!\u00a0<\/span>Alynne, who is now an excellent director herself, and I have done numerous shows together (including another at ELT).\u00a0 And today Alynne, and her wonderful husband Albert Krull and their talented children Kathryn and Jeremy are extended family with me.<\/span><\/p>\n

LINKS<\/b><\/u>
\nSee Mapping The Legacy\/GODSPELL-ELT 1981 for Cast photo.
\nSee <\/span>Equity Library Theater GODSPELL\u00a0 New York Times review<\/a>.
\nSee the record for this production in The New York Public Library archives for Equity Library Theater here<\/a>.
\nAlso see the WorldCat.org record here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

————————————————————————————————<\/p>\n

GODSPELL<\/b> \u2014 Circus (1981)
\n<\/b><\/span>f<\/b>or Adelphi Performing Arts Center, NY<\/span><\/p>\n

WILLIAM KOCH & ADELPHI UNIVERSITY
\n<\/b><\/u>In 1981, I was hired by Theatre Dept. Chair Nicholas Petron as a Guest Professional Acting Teacher, and it was exciting to work again with students hungry for Theatre training. Side note: I totally enjoyed teaching one course for non-Theatre majors, who were fulfilling a \u201cFine Arts\u201d requirement but used Theatre tools to develop their self-confidence, public communicating, and ensemble skills!<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1982, I was allowed to offer an acting class where, for the semester, each student picked a type of character and worked on how he or she was expressed style-wise in Sophocles\u2019 ELECTRA, Shakespeare\u2019s HAMLET, and O\u2019Neill\u2019s MOURNING BECOMES ELECTRA. Also I was hired to D&C GODSPELL\u2014the senior production. The cast was excellent! And because this Theatre Department also taught Circus skills, during half hour, the audience was treated to fire eaters and sword swallowers, clowns and acrobats! And we incorporated some of these talents into the staging and choreography.<\/p>\n

Jesus\u2014<\/strong><\/span>The actor who won the role of \u201cJesus,\u201d and gave an excellent interpretation, kept asking for help with his constant dream: to write & compose a modern LA BOHEME\u2014his name was Jonathan Larson. At one point he asked \u201cDo you think Stephen Sondheim would give me advice?<\/i>\u201d Half kidding, I answered \u201cWhy don\u2019t you call him.\u201d<\/i> Jonathan did; and Mr. Sondheim offered and they had lunch together, and Jonathan happily shared many things he learned at that luncheon. That\u2019s paying it forward!<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDay By Day\u201d<\/strong>\u2014As in my ELT production, this number was staged with sign language\u2014the initial verse pure sign with the lyrics, and as each group added on, the previous group would enlarge the signs, until the signs became pure dance movements, and for the final chorus the lead used a bouncing ball chart and would ask the audience to sing along. At one performance, one whole section of the audience wrapped around the thrust stage were members of a school for the deaf, so their delightful interpreter sat on the edge of the stage, interpreting for her group. When the “Day” singer invited everyone to sing, the interpreter sat there, a grin on her face, her hands in her lap, as every member of that school joined the rest of the audience and the cast singing \u201cDay By Day\u201d<\/i>\u2014an entire section of the audience singing in sign language!<\/span><\/p>\n

Connie (Constance Harcar) \u2014<\/strong>Tragedy struck: one of our terrific young ladies had a serious family crisis and had to leave immediately\u2014the morning of our last run-thru, with only tech & dress before we opened. Though this was traditionally a seniors-only production, I asked if a gifted sophomore in one of my classes could step in; permission granted; since Connie didn\u2019t know the show, I gave her a day and evening to crash course the script and score (with the music director).<\/p>\n

My wonderful assistant and I walked Connie through staging the next afternoon, but it was obvious she had done incredible homework in 24 hours.\u00a0That night, Connie joined the entire show at Tech Rehearsal (which thanks to a great crew ran smoothly)\u2014and except for a few tiny moments, she fit in like a hand in a glove!<\/span><\/p>\n

Next night, at Dress Rehearsal, several local reporters showed up\u2014traditionally allowed a pre-view, so that early reviews would (hopefully) help ticket sales. In this case, I was allowed to tell them the situation\u2014without naming the replacement\u2014and asked them to be kind. They understood and agreed.<\/p>\n

After the Dress Performance, the reporters (who loved our show) guessed each of the nine other wonderful performers as the replacement person, until one said \u201cThe only person we haven\u2019t named is Connie\u2014it can\u2019t be her!<\/i>
\n
\nWatching Connie work was one of the richest and most humbling and learning experiences of my career. Whatever she did was done with total confidence yet awareness and sharing with those around her; if she realized something was incorrect, she immediately made another choice\u2014not one second wasted on discussion, recriminations, guilt, or shame. And she and the original cast blended immediately. From then on, Connie\u2019s work habits continue to help other performers\u2014especially students\u2014as I pass on her story to other performers in my work as a director or teacher.<\/span><\/p>\n

And FINALLY, and of course, I share the gratitude, the pride, the gift I felt years later, sitting in a Broadway Theater watching Jonathan Larson\u2019s musical dream come true: RENT.<\/p>\n

————————————————————————————————<\/span><\/p>\n

GODSPELL \u2014 Trinity (1991)<\/strong>
\nfor Trinity Episcopal Church-Wall Street, NY<\/span><\/p>\n

WILLIAM KOCH & TRINITY CHURCH<\/u><\/strong>
\nI was hired and well paid to do a full production of GODSPELL in the gorgeous, main church space of Trinity Church Wall Street.\u00a0 I enjoyed the irony that many academicians now believe formal \u201cTheatre\u201d started with religious re-enactments of their heritage stories, and here we were about to present a musical about Jesus on the sacred space of a Christian church.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Trinity Version was another cultural translation\u2013to the life of Trinity Church Wall St. Thus the play began as though it was the opening of a regular service, with the audience singing the original hymn version of \u201cTurn Back Oh Man\u201d<\/i> and the opening speech being delivered by a priest-looking actor from the high pulpit. This was soon interrupted by construction workers (per church renovation going on at the time), and the rest of the evening utilized the properties, rituals, vestments (costumes), altar pieces (sets), and other aspects of Trinity Church and its community. One of my favorite sections was \u201cPrepare Ye\u201d<\/i> (beautifully sung by Tim Connell) where the idea of John the Baptizer\u2019s water ritual of baptism was conveyed by his drawing a huge, blue Chinese silk veil out of the stunning bronze baptismal pitcher used at Trinity, creating a theatrical \u201criver\u201d for the meaning of the song, as the cast danced their \u201cbaptism\u201d under and about the rippling blue veil.<\/p>\n

THE HOMELSS OUTREACH
\n<\/b><\/u>Trinity oversees a homeless drop-in center (as well as a food program and some limited housing for men in transition). The actors (unless script specified) were able to choose the nature of their own character for this translation. One young man began the performance \u201casleep\u201d in a pew as the audience came in. His performance was so excellent that a social worker tried to convince him to come with her to the shelter\u2014until she saw him follow John onstage in \u201cPrepare Ye.\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

VERGERS
\n<\/b><\/u>In addition to part-time Theatre work, I was also working as a verger for Trinity Church. A verger is a church stage manager, and like good stage managers, the audience shouldn\u2019t know you\u2019re there. So two fellow vergers volunteered to be crew for the production, thus moved props, lit or doused candles, changed altar cloths, etc. My thought was to let the audience see what vergers (and stage managers & crew) usually do unseen. When I asked a Theatre friend what she thought of the vergers\/crew, she was puzzled and finally said \u201cI honestly don\u2019t remember seeing them.\u201d<\/i>\u00a0Success has its price!<\/span><\/p>\n

YOU NEVER KNOW WHO IN THE AUDIENCE YOU WILL TOUCH
\n<\/b><\/u>There was a senior priest on staff at the time who thought our production in the sacred space of the church was not at all appropriate.\u00a0<\/span>However, he came to one of the last performances. As usual, after the show there was a line of people wanting to express their feelings, and I noticed this priest get in line. However, as new people got on line, I could see from the side that this man would then go to the back of the line. \u201cI guess I\u2019m going to get it!\u201d<\/i> I thought. Finally the cast, crew, and other well-wishers were gone and as the priest approached me, as I was used to doing, I held out my hand. He took my hand, and with a little joint stiffness, this senior, seasoned priest knelt, with tears in his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cThank you\u201d<\/i> he said quietly \u201cI will never be able to look at all the elements of my religion again without these new visions.\u201d<\/i>\u00a0 Then he left.<\/span><\/p>\n

As Tony Randall so simply and powerfully reminded us at an American Academy of Dramatic Arts graduation, what we do in Theatre is all about “service”–for ourselves and for others.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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