Que triste!  The Children’s Program has ended.  I was so impressed with those adorable kiddos.  I really didn’t think two weeks was enough time to write a script, create backdrops, props, and costumes.  When I do this with my 4th graders in Brooklyn, we take about 5 months for the entire process, from start to finish!  However, the kids ended up writing their script really quickly.  They created impressive backdrops in one day.  The props they brought in themselves.  Honestly, the costumes took the longest, but that was just because the kids wanted to keep improving them.  We even had a mom come in and use our sewing machine and make 3 amazing dresses out of the very random material I brought.  

Basically, what I’ve come to learn is that when more responsibility is given to young people, they organize themselves and become leaders.  OH, yes.  Of course they needed our help, especially in the beginning, but they got it together and put on an amazing show!  As a teacher, it can be very hard for me to give up control (can you believe THAT?).  However, sometimes just letting the kids “loose” to create on their own can be a very rewarding experience.  These kids went from being on book on Thursday, needed numerous reminders from Michelle and I about blocking, costumes, you name it...to completely blowing away their friends and family on Friday without much help from us.  Okay, Michelle and I had to keep changing the backdrops, because the kids never quite got the hang of those transitions, BUT, besides that, they totally carried the show through from beginning to end...by themselves.  Only a few students still needed their scripts.  :)

One of the best parts for me is seeing the parent’s reactions after the show.  I was surprised at how many parents and friends actually showed up!  I start to love the kids like they are my own, so I can only imagine how proud those parents must be.  There were parents who basically could not stop taking pictures of their kids throughout the show.  Yep.  So awesome to see.  The parents were beaming.  I love that.  Those kids who have the support of their parents...they will be able to do just about anything in the future.  

-Rachel Bingman (Children's Program Director)

As someone who has struggled to learn Spanish for a number of years, I am always amazed when I encounter people who are completely bilingual.  It’s true that in the majority of cases, those individuals have either grown up in a bilingual environment, studied from a young age in a bilingual school, or have lived immersed in another language for extended periods of time; nevertheless, to witness the ease with which some people can easily negotiate between two languages in the same conversation seems to me a type of rarified ventriloquism.  And while I often feel like a dummy in Spanish, I’m still waiting for that fluent voice to speak through me.

Our cast is about 90% bilingual in English and Spanish – and probably 60% speak flawless, unaccented, colloquial English.  I’m assuming this is also true of their Spanish.  This state of affairs is both a blessing and a curse for me.  On the one hand, I can easily give directions and have in-depth conversations with the majority of the cast in English but, of course, this doesn’t aid my own cultural immersion or language acquisition.  Also, because I am not fluent, I can’t easily go back and forth between languages – I need to switch out my hard drive and reboot – which means I often conveniently forget there are some non-English speakers in the cast who feel alienated when I’m speaking in my rapid, at times very colloquial, English.  This is an issue of which I need to be cognizant during the final stretch of our rehearsal process so the entire ensemble feels included and united.

For me, this situation epitomizes the challenges and, ultimately, the rewards of multi-cultural immersion: When faced with the new, the unknown or the uncomfortable, at what point does one fall back on the comforts of home and at what point do we consciously overcome our fears and/or prejudices and truly immerse?  I’ve come to believe this dialectic between conscious and unconscious action is the key to overcoming both language and cultural challenges.  When we are mindful, we can interact with those things we cannot control and reach a level of engagement, if not always comfort, and in doing so, become more fluent.  However, when we are mindless and reacting out of habit or fear or shame – often the case in stressful situations – we are isolated and inherently disengaged. 

Having directed theater for over twenty years, I can often rely on a bag of well-worn tricks to negotiate the obstacles often faced in the final weeks of rehearsal.  However, doing it in Costa Rica, at least partially in Spanish, is going to force this old dog to learn some new tricks.  Fortunately, I have a wonderful group of teachers.


-Scott Feldsher (Director)

The kids in the production are making a lot of progress. Yesterday Erin was out sick so I was running over the Skid Row dance with the kids and they basically have all the moves down; now it’s a matter of polishing it up and putting energy into it and having confidence. Getting the kids to dance and sing at the same time is also a challenge; it’s a lot to juggle at once, but I have complete faith in them. 

Also the kids in the children’s program are getting excited about their production. I’m so encouraged by the children’s positive attitudes; they keep coming up with great ideas and are including the new kids as well. And Michelle and Rachel have been working so hard to make everything come together. The script is finished and so now the kids are working on the costumes as well as learning lines. One of the moms has volunteered to sew costumes for the children. Yesterday she finished one of the dresses and started working on another. Right now Scott and Dario are on a expedition in San Jose trying to find lights for “Little Shop of Horrors.” Hopefully they’ll find what we need!  

Overall things have been a little stressful, but I’m sure everything will come together :)

-Sophia Daly (Assistant Choreographer)

What I experience whenever I do a project with FCCMT is that I always learn something new about myself. It can be as little as knowing how high I can go on musical scale, or as big as making new and wonderful friends. Being in a project like this always makes me happy, I have a lot of fun, and I wouldn't want to do anything else with my time.

I remember when FCCMT came to Monteverde, Costa Rica three years ago, and they were presenting Urinetown. I went to every presentation they had. I loved it, I loved how they presented it, I loved the music, and I loved the people that were in it. I wasn't in town when they had the auditions, but I wish I had been there to be in such an awesome musical. I was lucky enough to get invited to the cast party where we played games and had a lot of fun. I think Lisa and her crew are the most generous and amazing people I've ever met, they are all so nice to everyone. In the long run, if I had the chance to be in all the productions that they have, I wouldn't hesitate a single moment.


-Jonathan Garner, age 15 
(Customer 1, Customer 2, Patrick Martin, and Seymour's understudy)

So, in my last post I whined about having choreographers' block, which is still very much true. However, I have figured out that it really doesn't matter; I'm almost completely done choreographing this show! In two weeks I have choreographed and taught every big dance number in this show--I have never worked so fast or diligently in my life! I'm really proud of myself and of the kids for keeping up with me. Sometimes I get frustrated because they forget things when we do run-throughs, but they really have learned a lot in a very short period of time. And we still have three weeks to get everything the way I want it! Of course I still have some choreographic work to do on one or two smaller, less involved numbers, and some of my big pieces don't have endings (or in the case of the Finale, a beginning...), but the bulk of the choreography is finished, taught, and in many cases, on its way to being cleaned. YAY!

On Thursday we had a pretty calm day as far as work goes, which was nice for three reasons: 1) I wasn't yelling at kids and counting to 8 an ungodly number of times, 2) I got to spend my morning hanging out with Dario, and 3) we met up with Michelle, Vanessa, Rachel (our newest addition to the staff), and Alvaro for lunch! Dario and I met up in the morning with the intention of doing work, but after talking it over we realized that there actually wasn't much we could do to accomplish our goals that morning since certain businesses decided not to be open during their posted hours. Thanks, Monteverde and Tico Time. So, instead of working, we hung out in Common Cup, drank coffee, and exchanged music. After a couple of hours of that, we went to the center of Santa Elena for Cosecha's (an incredible fruit smoothie stand in town--great improvement since last year!) with everyone else. After that we went up to the space for a staff meeting and a run-through of some mostly-finished scenes. Things are getting done fast, but we're starting to run out of time!

Saturday was Alvaro's 18th birthday! Friday night he came out with us girls so we could celebrate with him outside of work and on Saturday we got the whole cast to sing happy birthday to him. He can be pretty shy, so it's hard to tell if it made him happy or incredibly uncomfortable, but I’m going to say it made him happy. Michelle also had the great idea to make him a card signed by the entire staff and to have all of us draw him pictures. This was a bit of a joke since he's an incredible artist and the rest of us, well, aren't, but I think he appreciated the gesture!

Even though everything has been going pretty well with the show, I have been sick lately, which isn't so much fun. Turns out I've been having an asthma attack for two weeks, plus the mold from the rain and dust from the performance space is making everything worse. As a result, Lisa wouldn't let me work today. So, I spent the day watching musicals in my room. Not a bad way to spend a sick day, but I would have much rather been in rehearsal with my staff and kids. Sophia took over my dance rehearsals today and apparently really worked on getting everything clean, which is so great. It's a really good thing I have an assistant choreographer this year! I am also lucky enough to have made friends over the last few weeks who will come visit me even though I am sick and gross. After work, Vanessa and Michelle came over to my host family’s house to watch the movie Little Shop of Horrors. We spent the entire two hours mocking Ellen Green and picturing our cast in their respective roles. Overall, not a bad ending to a not-so-fun day.

Scott and Dario are down in San Jose getting us the hook-up with stage lights. Hopefully they'll come back more knowledgeable and with more resources than when they left!

-Erin Lafferty (Choreographer)

Every morning I’ve been spending two hours talking to small children about girls
who escape to the forest, tigers, plot, conflict, characters, skylights in the shape of
hearts, scenery, costumes, empathy…

Why such a variety? Because 15 kids ages 9-12 are creating a play! It’s such a
privilege working with Rachel Bingman and Adrienne (Raquelita and Adriana in
class) on the curriculum that Rachel wrote for the program. In high school, I used to think that I could never be a teacher, but I’m starting to learn that with a good outline and good goals for every class, I can lead a group of kids through making a whole play and let their creativity drive our activities.

Outside of the children’s program, the kids in Little Shop are really interested in what’s going on in my little puppetry workshop. I’m constantly answering questions like “How are you going to make the plant grow?” and “What are you going to use to make the huge puppet?” I can’t wait to teach my two puppetry workshops in
August! My experience right now working with the children’s program is living me a lot of ideas on how to conduct a two-week class for children that both engages them and sparks their creativity. I don’t know what the final product of those workshops will be yet; my initial thought was to create a whole puppet show, and I might stick with that or perhaps even work on large-scale puppets for a community parade!

-Michelle (Puppeteer)

Oh, little children, how I love them!!  I arrived in Monteverde on Wednesday, and was working with the kids the very next day.  It felt SO good to be around the kids during a time when I was transitioning into a whole new lifestyle.  The kids make me feel comfortable and give me purpose and focus during an otherwise crazy experience!  But I’m happy to say that my whole experience is much less crazy, thanks to all the amazing people I’ve met here.  And I must give a very special shout out to Sophia, who met me at the bus, took me to my host family (we share a room) and has recently even switched beds with me because the one I was in was hurting my back!  Now, not just anyone would do that.  Sophia, you have made this whole experience so much better- thank you!  

All of the volunteers here are full of this special energy that you don’t often see every day.  Where else do you meet people so eager to travel the world, venture into new communitiies, and seriously....work with kids...this does not come naturally for just anyone.  And the kids involved in the Children’s Program are so eager to create and perform.  They have written this amazing script about empathy, poverty, and discrimination.  And more importantly about a tiger who does not speak tiger...and therefore feels very left out.  I think kids naturally want to explore these issues, as they experience them every day.  

Michelle, who is the lead teacher in the Children’s Program, because she is awesome and speaks perfect Spanish, is so amazing with the kids.  Michelle is so animated and is such a natural teacher.  The kids adore her and are more motivated to work when she is around.  Michelle, Adrienne, and I just worked on casting the play.  Next week is all about rehearsal and creating our costumes, props, and backdrop.  It’s all happening too fast!!  If only the Children’s Program could last all summer... :)

-Rachel Bingman (Children's Program Director)

Last week was particularly busy for me.  I decided to enroll in morning Spanish classes, meaning both evening homework (tarea, en español) and fewer free hours in my workday to prepare for rehearsals or write a blog.  Rarely is tardiness a good thing, but in this case all’s well that ends well because I can write about our Act One run-through yesterday afternoon.

For those who aren’t privy to our inside theater lingo, a “run-through” is simply a rehearsal where we do all or part of the play, stopping as little as possible, and usually without any costumes, sets or lights, but with props.  Yesterday, we ran-through Act One from beginning to end “off book” – another theater term meaning that all lines are memorized.  Typically, the first off-book run-through of a play, especially a musical, is a little scary for the cast because everything is moving at full speed – usually before it is ready for the acceleration.  And, as with removing training wheels, there are always a few stumbles, a bruise or two (in this case, only egos), but it is a necessary means to an end.

Yesterday’s run-through had its ups and downs.  A few exceptional moments, a few horrible moments, and lots of others that are just where they should be: shaky, but on their way.  Overall, it was exactly what it should have been for this point in our process.  However, what was most impressive about the rehearsal was the focus and effort of our ensemble of student performers.  Ranging in age from 11-18, all of them had their lines memorized, as well as their songs, dance numbers and staging.  When we needed to stop and work on something, they were quiet, attentive and adaptable.  For me, seeing this cast of twenty working resiliently towards a goal with preternatural maturity was the most exciting and encouraging part of the day.  Yesterday gave me a lot of confidence in this group’s ability to realize a wonderful production of a wonderful play.  Although there is still an enormous amount of work ahead, I have a lot of confidence in not only my Far Corners colleagues, but also our talented cast.

-Scott Feldsher (Director)

My fan club (which currently consists of my mother and Lisa’s mother) has been bugging me for some time about making a guest appearance on this blog. The reason I’m not a regular contributor, aside from my busy schedule, is that my productorial duties, as important as they are to the show, don’t make for fascinating reading. “Adventures in bureaucracy at the Ministerio de Salud Monteverde” is about as exciting as it usually gets; the photocopying, scheduling and fundraising that make the show happen keep me largely in a backstage role. I do, however, enjoy the opportunities I get to participate in the creative side of this endeavor.

I got just such an opportunity this week when Lisa asked me to help make recordings of the cast’s vocal parts. Many of our students have never had formal music lessons and thus don’t know how to read music, which makes learning the intricate harmonies in “Little Shop” challenging indeed. A rehearsal recording that has only, say, the alto line, helps the students learn an inner part that might not be so easy to hear in the Broadway cast album. I was very enthusiastic at the prospect. “They did that for us at Disney!” I exclaimed. (I spent three years working at Walt Disney World in Florida, and I aspire to having our program one day be as organized, if not as well-funded!) But my excitement quickly turned to frustration as I tried to cram yet another task into my busy schedule.

My first thought was to complete the recordings at home, at our peaceful rented casita in the cloud forest. While there was not a lot of ambient noise (save the occasional bellbird) there was also not a lot of time. On an average day, we spend about two waking hours at home – usually just about enough time to eat and shower! While I do sometimes have downtime during the day since I am not running rehearsals, I still need to be at the venue to do my administrative tasks and be available for problem-solving. So if any recording was going to happen, it had to happen there.

The venue, however, is incredibly noisy, the unfinished concrete walls reverberating with songs from two or more simultaneous rehearsals. Additionally, since the Centro Comercial is on the main road into town, the music is often punctuated by the rumble of motorcycles and ATVs. Where would I find a make-shift recording studio in a building that doesn’t even have electrical outlets?

Thinking of electrical outlets made me remember – the bathroom! Faithful readers of this blog will remember that Vanessa used to have to hunch over her army-issue sewing machine on the tiled floor because the bathroom contained the only electrical outlet on the second story. Now that we have acquired extension chords, the bathroom no longer needs to be a sweatshop. And the tile walls provide reasonably good sound insulation. They also provide an echo on the track that makes me sound like I’m singing in Madison Square Garden - that’s why singing really does sound better in the shower! The reverb is not ideal for recording, however, so I went looking for items to dampen the sound. I wound up taping cotton batting (intended for use in one of the larger puppets) to the wall, and Vanessa lent me piles of costumes. We’re using a little ingenuity and (very!) little money to transform an empty warehouse into a theatre, so there’s really no reason I should have doubted our ability to create a recording studio in a public restroom!

~Adrienne Leduc, Producer/Assistant Program Director

Yesterday we started the children’s program. In the morning, I went to two of the schools to pick up some of the children to take them to the venue. Adrienne and I tried as best we could to communicate with the children and explain the games with our limited Spanish, which was pretty amusing. Thankfully Alvaro and Michelle helped out with “Spanish Emergencies.” We also read a story to the children called “Oye Hormigita!” The story focuses on bullying, which is going to be the main theme of the children’s play. The children also drew pictures of potential settings for the play that they will be putting on. I was really encouraged by how responsive the kids were; they really got into the games that we played with them. We didn’t have any behavioral problems either, thankfully. I’m having such a great time working with the kids; they are so creative. I can’t wait to see what ideas they come up with for their play.

-Sophia (Assistant Choreographer)