MCMASTER THEATRE IS ALIVE ‘N KICKING

McMaster University Theatre

By Jordan Hallin

September rolls in and another fantastic season of McMaster theatre is already well under way. For those unfamiliar with me, my name is Jordan Hallin and I have been heavily involved in theatre at Mac for the past four years. Over the past four years I have participated as cast of 7 Mac productions, presided as president of MTC (McMaster Thespian Company) for two years, acted as social rep for MTC and MMT (McMaster Musical Theatre), and have been a spectator of countless productions here at McMaster, and throughout Hamilton.

This past year I had the immense pleasure of catching every production but one put on here at Mac including IRIS (Inspiration, Reflection, Integrity, Success), the Fall Major, the six HPS (Honours Performance Series) productions, as well I had the pleasure of helping critique the Health Science Musical. I admit I missed the Engineering Musical, but heard only splendid things. I mention these things not to boast but rather to demonstrate that I have a personal appreciation for the amount of hard work and dedication that goes into each of the many productions that occur here at Mac. The Engineering and Health Science Musicals are in fact written, directed, produced, etc. entirely by members of their faculty. And the HPS productions are courses that Theatre & Film Honours students take very seriously, many of which, if not all, are written by McMaster students.



As I write this article another unbelievable production of IRIS has come to a close and by the time this article is published MTC and MMT will already be done their days of auditions and their casting. All this being said, fret not, for there are still many ways to be involved as cast, crew, spectator and sponsor. Another season of HPS shows and faculty driven productions will require auditions and dedicated crews to help guarantee each of their success. HPS auditions in fact, are happening this week, so be sure to check those out. I encourage everyone to become involved in one capacity or another, regardless of your past involvement in theatre; it’s surely a ride you won’t regret.



But to reign in my thoughts for a moment (I have been known to digress) I decided to write this column in large part because I feel the theatre community here at Mac could bode well to have a sense of unity. For those unaware, every year there is an end of year Theatre & Film Formal that features an award ceremony known as The Drammies. These awards are meant as a celebration for all the hard work put into the many productions and are well sought for but only truly carry weight if the voting population is a well informed population.

To this end I urge everyone, especially those who will be taking part in one or more of the productions happening here at McMaster, to attend as many shows as possible. The HPS shows, which happen generally in March, are entirely free, and the collective cost for tickets to each of the other productions probably rounds out to about the cost of one night’s bar tab. So take one night off from getting wastey pants and help support some splendid community theatre. Trust me, you won’t regret it and everyone involved will be beyond grateful.



With that said, cheers, and let’s have an unbelievable season!

Audition info:
Abstraction
Tasteless
The Role Players