Bears and the Bard

by cameron
Friday, June 12, 2009 10:02am (PST)

So week one has wrapped up, and I am settling into lovely Reno, NV.

Aside from the typical meet and greet, design presentations and read-thrus, which all were wonderful and exciting, settling in has been some what different than theatres of the past.

Mainly, Bears. Upon entering my housing, my roommate and I were greeted with the refrigerator magnet which read, "Stash you Trash, a fed bear is a Dead Bear!"

Now being a city boy, the closest I have ever come to bears is the cartoon one that stole picnic baskets, so the idea of Yogi, Smokey or any other woodland creature strolling through the neighborhood rummaging through my trash was a little unsettling.

That was followed by the advice, "If, which is extremely rare, you are attacked by a bear, Fight Back!"

Ok. Now not only am I hiding my trash from these bears, but they are disgruntled!

So, I'm watching "When Animals Attack" while learning lines, when I am struck by the amazing company of actors, designers, stage-managers, directors, technicians and artistic staff I am working with, and I became very excited about the new possibility available for this theatre and the community.

At our first company meeting we spoke about being "Ambassadors" for the festival, now that can mean many things, but I take it mean that we stand a crossroads of what the theatre has been and can become, one not more or less important than the other, but two pieces of a whole, without either, what is to occur would not be possible.

Now, this is not what I said to the guy at Jiffy Lube, I said, "We're doing some exciting things up there this summer, and If you been waiting to join us for an evening, this is the summer to do it!"

I look forward to seeing him and his girlfriend in the audience some night over the summer, and we have hit the ground running on what is to be a remarkable season!

Cameron Knight