Alex: What is the history of
your involvement with BUGS?
Simon: I read the website of the
organization the summer before I joined Brown...and I though, “Oh,
I should totally audition for this,” and having never auditioned
for any opera, music theater, anything before, I just ended up in the
chorus....And then in the spring semester I auditioned a bit more
seriously and I got cast is Wilfred in Yeomen of the Guard.
...
Alex:
Do you think a lot of people that join BUGS haven't had a lot acting
experience, like yI ou?
Simon:
...Perhaps maybe a fifty/fifty split of the new recruits between
those who have theater experience and those who don't. Although,
those who do have theater experience going into BUGS, perhaps that
theater experience is more likely to be like operatic experience
rather than regular theater.
Alex:
Do
you think that there's any kind of divide between people who are
theater veterans and people who are sort of new to the craft...?
Simon:
I
do feel that sometimes people who end up in BUGS, end up in the
choruses of BUGS sometimes kind of realize that there's no real hope
of progressing for them because they're not really good enough...to
actually have a lead role and so are destined to be stuck in the
choruses, so maybe there's a divide there.
Alex:
Do those people tend to stick around?
Simon:
Actually
those do tend to people the people who sometimes stick around in
BUGS, although obviously they sometimes leave because of that. But
what I'm saying is that the kind of people who would more reliably
get proper acting roles in BUGS shows kind of then, despite the fact
that they can get it, don't have much interest having done it a
couple of times. They want to go on to bigger and better theater
things.
Alex:
So
are you saying that BUGS sort of occupies a lower rung on the ladder
in terms of theater at Brown?
Simon:
Yes.
For example, BUGS, I've noticed always makes sure to mention other
theater productions going on just before they start each performance,
but I went to the Musical Forum review on Saturday evening, and they
had a similar segment just before their show began, but they
specifically omitted BUGS's show. BUGS's show is going up not for a
while, however they mentioned a show that was going up in December,
so I found that curious.
Alex:
How about the social life of BUGS? Do you feel like it tends to a
close knit group?
Simon:
I
get the impression that in the past it was a quite close knit group.
I don't know if you know anything about BUGS parties, but there's
been a kind of tradition in BUGS that there are these parties, both
around the show and at random points in the year in which lots of
Gilbert and Sullivan will be sung, not the current show, just Gilbert
and Sullivan for the pleasure of it. And then there were people who
got involved in BUGS who like to go to parties that aren't really
like that. So there's a little sort of divide, that's one rift within
BUGS.
Alex:
So you're saying there's kind of a hard-core group...defined by their
interest in Gilbert and Sullivan?
Simon:
Yeah, I feel like there was that hard-core group and they've kind of
disappeared...Those people have kind of vanished. They've mostly
graduated, to be honest. And most of the new people they recruited
while they were at Brown enjoy Gilbert and Sullivan, but not in that
way. And that may be one reason why BUGS is kind of, in my view,
declining.
….
Alex:
So what is your current involvement with BUGS?
Simon:
I
sit on the board of BUGS....I offered my services for accompanying
their rehearsals because I play piano, and then I kind of backed out
of that arrangement because of my frustration with how I think their
show is going to turn out this semester...I've become involved in
other theater groups on campus, specifically Production Workshop and
Musical Forum, and I've been accompanying. I haven't transitioned to
acting for any of those groups yet...but I think it's a possible
thing for the future.
Alex:
And
how has your experience with those other theater groups compared with
your experience with BUGS?
Simon:
I
mean, it's just when it comes to auditioning and calling back people,
it's just the complete reverse. Rather than BUGS which has a dearth
of people, and particularly a dearth of talented people, who want to
be involved with the show, things like PW and MF have many, many
people....They could pick and choose for every part, and they can
pick and choose for their choruses as well. Unlike BUGS, I
guess...you can question the cause and effect here, BUGS actually
has, I believe, something in their policies so that anyone who wants
to be in the chorus for show can be. It's not like they turn down
people....We've had a couple of kind of difficult people in the past,
one still now, who wanted to be on the board but weren't elected to
the board but then wanted to turn up to meetings and were essentially
told that they could not do so. But that's a consequence of having
this policy where you're kind of open to anyone being involved.
Alex:
So are there sometimes people who the rest of the group would rather
that they weren't sticking around and singing and acting and being
involved in politics?
Simon:
I think you could say that...I don't know what it is, but Gilbert and
Sullivan is certainly a niche appreciated piece of culture in the
twenty-first century, and for whatever reason the people who do
appreciate it perhaps tend to not be your people who are most easy to
get on with.
Seems like a great interview! I'll be interested to see how Simon's perspectives on BUGS differ from those of other people in the group. He definitely seems like he's become frustrated with the culture recently. It'll also be interesting in the next few years to see if a new BUGS "hard-core group" develops - is this just part of the typical waxing and waning of a student group at Brown, or is it part of a larger trend?
ReplyDeleteSimon is very articulate about his frustrations with this group. It's interesting that many of these appear to center on the essential nature of the group: for example, the fact that everyone who tries out is allowed to participate, and the fact that Gilbert and Sullivan enthusiasts seem to be generally difficult to get along with. I wonder why there seems to have been a decrease in Gilbert and Sullivan-centricity in the group over time. Perhaps the disappearance from the group of people who enjoy Gilbert and Sullivan as a genre has sparked the declining participation that Simon mentions, which has in turn caused some of the frustrating circumstances. On the other hand, perhaps these frustrations have driven people away from the group. Or perhaps BUGS is entrenched in a cycle of frustration and lack of participation. It should be noted that Simon's opinion, as that of someone who is no longer a member of the group, might not be representative of current trends in BUGS, but given the 'dearth of people' that he describes, I wonder if BUGS will be able to continue for many more years without a change in policy, process, or vision.
ReplyDeleteThis is an extremely interesting interview, especially since the interviewee presents an insider's and outsider's perspective all at once, having taken part in BUGS for a few semesters as well as in other theater groups. This may have been addressed in the rest of the interview, but when he says he "sits on the board" of BUGS, what does that entail? There is some discussion of the issue of the politics of BUGS, and maybe it isn't right to publish those details, but on what level (i.e. related to the production itself, the choice of play, the choices of roles, etc.) do these issues arise? Also, does Simon have any inkling of a reason behind the decline in the "hardcore" Gilbert and Sullivan fans that take part in the group? Are there just fewer of them at Brown, or do they choose not to participate?
ReplyDeleteAlex,
ReplyDeleteReally interesting material and very great work on your part! It is fascinating to read about various hierarchies within and around BUGS, notions of tradition/the past and modernity/post-modernity, etc. Looking at your questions made clear, once again, how brevity and to-the-point approach always serves the interviewer and allows the interviewee explore his/her most wanted territories while answering.