From Emma – We Have an App for That

Every fall, a new class of apprentices comes to Touchstone, to begin a year of work, learning, and artistic creation. It’s always an energetic, artistic breath of fresh air when they join the company, and those of us in the Ensemble are consistently impressed and revitalized by this infusion of new energy into our creative consciousness.

But it’s once the ball gets rolling and the weeks get busy that we really start to see how important our apprentices can be. We’re a week out from The Pan Show – In Pan We Trust, and with oodles of marketing chores, props and costumes to finish, scenes to perfect, lighting and sound cues to tweak, and more; and it’s in moments like this that we really start to appreciate just what these apprentices can do.

Like Gary. Gary’s being with us is especially impressive in that it’s his first time seriously pursuing theatre, and he’s putting in some really solid work. Besides his time in the rehearsal room, he’s taken on making sure that the trash and recycling are always correctly sorted and taken out in a timely manner (this may seem like a minor chore, but knowing that it’s taken care of and not something we have to worry about is an amazing help). He’s also a fantastic tenor and father to two sweet kids.

And then there’s Kathryn, who’s been a huge asset to The Pan Show, both as a comedic actress and as a musical genius. She’s been helping Jp with the musical direction and sound design especially, leading music rehearsals and recording sound cues, but with her panache and comic timing, she’s also just a blast to watch onstage. On top of that, Kathryn is a recent Muhlenberg graduate, and she’s been tireless in her efforts to promote at Muhlenberg and help get students in the door here at Touchstone.

Many of you will already know Kyle for his work in A Resting Place last year, where he played runaway slave Charles, and The Young Playwrights’ Festival, where he portrayed the memorable alligator. This year, he’s thrown himself fully into the work of apprenticeship, assisting with stage management of The Pan Show (a formidable technical trial by fire), working hard in rehearsals for The Tempest and The Odyssey Project, taking on a host of marketing chores, and just looking for any chance to help.

And finally, Kayla comes to us from halfway across the country, where she was recommended our way by Sean Christopher Lewis, guest artist of last year’s presented work Killadelphia. Besides Kayla’s sunny, positive attitude and solid, articulate artistic ability, she’s recently been endearing herself by taking on a number of costume chores, often bringing projects home to work on, even after long days of rehearsal. She’s also helping out with hosting Touchstone rental events.

The apprentices debut with their first production as Touchstone company members on October 4 with the opening of In Pan We Trust. We’re so excited for our audiences to meet them and see the fruits of all the hard work they’ve been putting in – we can’t do this without them.

Tickets for The Pan Show: In Pan We Trust available here or by calling 610.867.1689

Stay tuned for more of the apprentices in Christmas City Follies, Fresh Voices, The Odyssey Project, and more.