On stage and backstage

Get a look at staging a major production from beginning to end at Kennesaw State

By Kennesaw State University

May 25^th, 2023

Ambition defines Kennesaw State University’s Department of Theatre and Performance Studies.

In preparing its majors for careers on the stage and beyond, each year the department takes on major productions of both drama and musical theater, empowering students in every aspect of the event, from lighting to costumes to set design and, of course, performing the roles.

Over the past decade, the department has staged such hits as “Heathers: The Musical,” “Bring It On: The Musical,” “The Spongebob Musical” and “Ragtime.” KSU has also produced updated works of Shakespeare, as well as theatre classics like “Our Town” and “In the Blood.”

In Spring 2023, KSU produced the Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning blockbuster “Rent.” The musical is a modern reworking of the Puccini opera “La Boheme,” set in mid-1980s East Village neighborhood in New York City. It follows a group of young people struggling to find their places in the world and in the artistic community in the faces of gentrification, racism and the burgeoning AIDS crisis.

From the initial table read in February to the final curtain in April, the entire company poured their hearts into the production. Enjoy this front-row seat.

Table Read

A table read is a structured read-through of a screenplay or script by actors with speaking parts in a film, TV show, or play.

Dramaturgy Presentations

Dramaturgy is the study of dramatic composition and the representation of the main elements of drama on the stage.

Blocking

Blocking is a term used in theatre to describe the location of actors on the stage and the movements that they make. The process of blocking is done during rehearsals and is a collaborative effort between the actors and the director.