{"id":71087,"date":"2022-01-21T04:00:42","date_gmt":"2022-01-21T08:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/?p=71087"},"modified":"2022-01-24T09:57:04","modified_gmt":"2022-01-24T13:57:04","slug":"theatre-major-realizes-dream-of-bringing-original-work-to-utoledo-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/01_21_2022\/theatre-major-realizes-dream-of-bringing-original-work-to-utoledo-stage","title":{"rendered":"Theatre Major Realizes Dream of Bringing Original Work to UToledo Stage"},"content":{"rendered":"

For many directors, it may take years before their original work is performed on the stage.<\/p>\n

For senior theatre major Alec Simon, that opportunity has arrived.<\/p>\n

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Alec Simon, far right, directs cast members, from left, freshman Marissa McCoy, 2020 UToledo graduate Caris Croy and sophomores Tyler Teachout and Hazel Penrose during a recent rehearsal of his original work, ‘Elkshire.’<\/p><\/div>\n

Simon\u2019s original work, \u201cElkshire,\u201d will take the stage for four performances this February at the Center for Performing Arts, representing the culmination of years of writing that started back in middle school.<\/p>\n

\u201cElkshire\u201d is a fantastical journey through a far-off land. The story follows Merrick, an inventor, as she tries to impress the town\u2019s ruler while trying not to derail the flow of daily life for those living in the town. But a force works to upend everything and Merrick must save her friends, family and the town as a whole.<\/p>\n

Simon, a Waterville native, became interested in theater in fourth grade through grade school plays and local productions at the Toledo Children\u2019s Theatre Workshop.<\/p>\n

In middle school, his love for theater grew into a curiosity for writing. The plot to \u201cElkshire\u201d began as parts of short stories he wrote. It wasn\u2019t until his freshman year of high school that he transformed his short stories into the script that \u201cElkshire\u201d came to be.<\/p>\n

When he started classes at UToledo, Simon was able to adapt the script even further. He dove deeper into writing methods and storytelling elements that helped him fine tune his work.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the stuff I\u2019ve learned here at UToledo really helped me to develop\u201d as a playwright, Simon said. \u201cOver the past three years, it\u2019s taken the most iterations and drafts to get the script to where it currently is.\u201d<\/p>\n

With only a few student works performed each year at the Center for Performing Arts, the pitching process to faculty starts early.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Simon<\/p><\/div>\n

During his freshman year, Simon pitched his idea to Dr. Matt Foss, associate professor of theatre, who helped him prepare to pitch \u201cElkshire\u201d later as a real production for UToledo. Foss was open and inviting to Simon\u2019s ideas, working through roadblocks and helping to find solutions.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlec took that invitation and opportunity early on in his time on campus, writing at a prolific pace, building the space to try and risk and make those necessary mistakes that come from the best learning experiences,\u201d Foss said. \u201cHe’s a serious-minded young man who doesn\u2019t take himself too seriously \u2014 a really wonderful way to approach the work.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was his junior year that Simon formally and successfully pitched \u201cElkshire.\u201d His creative process continued into this past summer with readying the script for public performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were a lot of steps that we had to go through,\u201d Simon said. \u201cPolishing, refining and also learning how to get it to a directing and performance standpoint.\u201d<\/p>\n

Simon, who is directing \u201cElkshire,” cast 14 UToledo students \u2014 a mix of theatre and other majors \u2014 in the fall. The ensemble continues rehearsals in preparation for the shine of the bright stage lights and the applause of a packed audience.<\/p>\n

After the curtain closes on Simon\u2019s time as a Rocket, he said wants to continue designing and writing for theater companies or schools in the Toledo area, inspiring future theater playwrights that they, too, can see their work come to fruition with a little guidance from others.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen people create their first work, they\u2019re always so protective of their work,\u201d Simon said. \u201cThis is their baby and they don\u2019t want anyone changing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve learned that no one wants to destroy your work. They want to help make it better and have more eyes on the process. This makes the show bigger and better and allows you to see things you didn\u2019t necessarily see the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"<\/a>

Senior Alec Simon\u2019s original work, \u201cElkshire,\u201d which he began writing in middle school, is scheduled for four performances this February at the Center for Performing Arts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":883,"featured_media":71089,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60,1,71,7],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71087"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/883"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71087"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71087\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71103,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71087\/revisions\/71103"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}