Butler University Police Department is looking into who was responsible for a theft in Lilly Hall on Monday night.

A wallet, a phone and an iPod were stolen from the costume shop of Lilly Hall sometime before 10 p.m.

Students were in the building, practicing for the theatre department’s “Bali Dream.”

When the cast was out of the room and upstairs doing quick changes, the items were taken from the costume shop in the basement.

In 11 weeks of police reports, 23 cases of theft from buildings have occurred. Nine have been reported in Lilly Hall.

In April, BUPD issued a warning to students after seven reports of theft were reported in 10 weeks.

No such warning has been issued this school year.

A candle warmer in a professor’s office started a fire that caused $10,000 worth of damage in Lilly Hall on Saturday.

The fire started in the office in the basement of Lilly Hall around 5:30 p.m.

Ben Hunter, chief of staff and executive director of public safety, said no one was in the building when the fire broke out, so it was not necessary to evacuate the building.

Hunter said that the building was closed at the time.

When an officer arrived at the building, smoke was visible, so the officer was able to lead the Indianapolis Fire Department to the fire’s location when it arrived on the scene.

Firefighters did not see any flames but saw a hallway filling up with smoke.

Since no one was in the building, Hunter said it was not necessary to send out an alert to students and faculty members.

“If we feel like there are people in danger, of course we would send something out,” Hunter said. “But fortunately it was all taken care of rather quickly.”

Original reports estimated that there were roughly $5,000 in damages. However, Rich Michal, executive director of facilities, now estimates that this number will be double.

Like a person trying to hush up hitting the big 3-0, the Phoenix Theatre will not be planning an elaborate party for its 30th anniversary this season.

The reason is much different, however.

Planning its anniversary season was much like laying out any other season, said Bryan Fonseca, producing director for the Phoenix.

Since the theater focuses on producing the newest shows available, putting on a “big hits retrospective” would have been against what it stands for.

Instead, Fonseca said he concentrated on what is happening in the moment.

Being an election year, Fonseca said he looked to find a production “that might inspire people to be involved in politics, something that might cause people to think a little bit about politics and reflect upon their own attitudes.”

He chose to start off the season with the musical “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” which runs Sept. 20 through Oct. 21.

Fonseca said part of what allows the Phoenix to be so current is the number of regional and worldwide premieres it produces.

On average, half of the Phoenix’s season are completely new plays, he said.  Last year, six out of its 10 productions had never before been produced in the Midwest.

The Phoenix belongs to the National New Play Network, the self-described “alliance of nonprofit theaters that champions the development, production and continued life of new plays.”

Fonseca said that when he chooses productions, he also makes sure the plays or musicals are entertaining. He tries to choose productions that enthrall the audience while ultimately causing people to think and reflect.

“Playwrights are unafraid to write about what’s going on in the world around us in a pure form,” he said.  “They won’t dilute the message.”

As an example, he spoke about the AIDS crisis and how long it took America to react.  Mainstream movies about the crisis did not start coming out until the mid-1990s, he said.  In contrast, the Phoenix put on productions centered on AIDS -related issues as early as 1985.

He said that the Phoenix has moved toward programming musicals into its seasons as well, since musicals are now commenting on current events.

In addition to the political “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” the Phoenix is producing the rock musical “Next to Normal” in January and February.

This musical, which tells the story of a woman coping with bipolar disorder and hallucinations, is only the eighth musical to win the Pulitzer Prize.

This season, management and artists are creating a five-year plan for future development.

Fonseca said he would like to see the Phoenix grow from an Indianapolis presence to a regional or national presence.  Slow and sustained growth has been and will be the key to success, he said.

Last year, the Phoenix had a 10 percent increase in ticket sales despite the down economy and troubled times for many arts organizations.

The Phoenix Theatre has many ties to Butler.

Butler students often work in its productions in acting or stage management positions, and several actresses from the Phoenix will be collaborating with Butler students in a staged reading of the play “Seven” this week in Lilly Hall.

“Seeing students work with professional actors on the stage makes the world of theater seem that much closer,” junior theatre major Veronica Orech said.

Fonseca said he wished to let Butler students know that he is always trying to find plays that address the concerns of their generation in particular.

“The producers here in Indianapolis are much more approachable than you might assume,” Fonseca said. “If you have a project or play you’re aware of, share that with us.”

Performers from Butler University and from the Phoenix Theater take on the lives and hardships of women from around the world in their production of “Seven.”

The documentary play “Seven” will be performed at Butler University’s Lilly Hall Studio Theatre next week from Sept. 5 through Sept. 8.

Though there will be performances of the play in cities around the globe later this year, including shows in Japan, Sweden and Russia.

Created in 2006, the piece tells the stories of seven women living in different parts of the world.

Despite some dark shadows cast upon the women in the piece, William Fisher, chair of Butler’s theater department, said the play has an positive tone, in a certain sense.

“(It is) not optimistic because of what these women have had to overcome in getting success, but because in every case and in every story, these are people whose work is ongoing and continuing,” Fisher said.

When seven female playwrights were commissioned by Vital Voices, an organizations working to “bring visibility to extraordinary women around the world by unleashing their leadership potential,” the result was a piece that documents women surmounting obstacles and promoting the betterment of humanity.

Among these stories is that of a congresswomen from Guatemala who has devoted her life and career to promoting the rights of the poor. She has received death threats for her work.

Another woman, from Pakistan, was gang raped. Instead of committing suicide as is socially expected, she has become an advocate for education reform.

Unlike a fictional narrative, Fisher said this documentary play cannot be finished.

“This is not a ‘problem solved at the end of the play’ play,” he said. “Instead, it tells us “this is what happened, this is where we are, this is what it seems to have cost and this is how we continue.”

The script will be performed as a staged reading with relatively minimal production and staging, a format which Fisher said is best suited for the structure of the piece.

Five Butler theatre students and two actresses from the Phoenix Theater will portray the seven women whose stories are told.

Fisher said that collaborating with professionals from the Phoenix Theater for this performance seemed to be a natural decision.

“Students from Butler frequently perform for their theater in roles or as interns,” he said. “It seemed intuitive to bring (members of the Phoenix Theater) to our campus under the idea of community—a particularly suitable idea for this play.”

Butler senior Kate Powell, who portrays Russian Marina Pisklakova-Parker in the production, said that the most extraordinary aspect of performing in “Seven” is how different the script sounded being spoken versus being read in her head.

“There’s so much more impact when someone is actually speaking the words,” Powell said.

A preview will take place next Thursday, followed by shows at 8 p.m. on the following three days. Tickets are $5 for Butler students with ID and $15 for the public.

Tickets are free on Thursday with a reservation, which can be made at www.butler.edu/theatre/productions/reservations

As the sun set on Thursday, Lilly Hall was bubbling with activity. Musical scales and melodies echoed outside the practice rooms on the second floor, classes were wrapping up in the ensemble rooms on the first floor, and the Butler Theatre was alight with people preparing for a week of tech rehearsals.

“[Lilly] is my place of solace,” said sophomore dance major Elizabeth Simoens, adding that she likes to dim the lights of the dance studios at night and dance improvisatorially alone or with a pianist.

“It’s like playtime,” she said, smiling.

Lilly Hall is full of creative energy during the day. It is the home of the Jordan College of Fine Arts as well as the Indianapolis Children’s Choir, American Pianists Association, Dance Kaleidoscope and other arts organizations.

As the night set in on Thursday, Lilly Hall began to change.

Thursday 9:30 p.m.

The basement is eerily empty. The only sounds echoing off the walls are my footsteps. Two girls chat in the lobby by the Butler Theatre on the first floor, where rehearsal for this week’s opening is ongoing.

Thursday 9:47 p.m.

A group of men in suits, all awaiting initiation into Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, sing together in the “old Lilly lobby” on the southwest corner of the building. They hold the red books given to all initiates, which contain the history and meaning of the organization.

James Caleca, sophomore music education major, was initiated into the men’s music fraternity on Thursday evening. He laughed and said that he and his fellow initiates decided it would be “a good idea to prance around Lilly Hall serenading girls” before the ceremony. Judging by the smiles on the audience, they were right.

Thursday 10:37 p.m.

Photo by Reid Bruner

On the third floor, Simoens works with a group of instrumentalists on a music and dance collaboration piece. Simoens commissioned this work from graduate composer Brian Spicklemire for a performance at a student choreography showcase next year, but it will be premiered on Saturday at Spicklemire’s composition recital. The dance is also on tomorrow’s Composers’ Orchestra concert  but without Simoens.

Using  Laban scales as a foundation, Simoens said she plans to weave her movements through the sounds of the instrumentalists, picking out musical “asides” to emphasize in order to avoid repetitive flowing movements. She has also developed a thematic movement, crossing all spatial axes, that will tie the piece together.

Thursday 11:22 p.m.

The second — floor music practice rooms are largely empty. Viola, piano and trumpet music floats down the corridors from various directions. A music student is asleep in the old lobby.

Friday 12:55 a.m.

After rehearsal, a group of theater students watch an episode of AMC’s television show “The Walking Dead” in the theater design lab.

Friday 2:22 a.m.

The last musician leaves her practice room and heads home for the night. The fluorescent lights in the hallways buzz, awaiting the sunrise and the influx of students for morning classes.

The metal door locked behind me, and the crisp air enveloped me as I left the building in the small hours of Friday morning, surprised and inspired by the mix of diligence and light-heartedness that is Lilly Hall after dark.

The legacy of a man considered to be one of the top five most programmed composers—along with Handel, Brahms, Mendelssohn and Mozart—can be found deep within the workings of Butler University’s Lilly Hall.

This composer, teacher and faculty member is music theory and history professor James Mulholland.  Mulholland has worked as a music professor at Butler for 47 years.

Mulholland’s interest in music can be traced back to his childhood in Mississippi.  He said his mother sang and played piano constantly. His father had a love of poetry and words.

“I grew up with a great respect for music, for beautiful poetry and for beautiful prose,” Mulholland said. “I just thought it was something that everyone did.”

Growing up outside of the city, Mulholland said he was a recluse with his parents.  Support from both of his parents resulted in an early talent and aptitude for music and the arts as a whole.

“I started studying piano as early as eight, but I started singing even before I was eight in church,” Mulholland said. “When I would sing, everyone would love my soprano voice, and I loved the attention.”

Mulholland said singing is part of his identity and personality.  He said he uses music as a means of communication.

In addition to piano and vocals, Mulholland said he studied almost all instruments as a student interested in composition during his college years at Louisiana State University.  Piano still remains as his instrument of choice today.

Mulholland said he found inspiration for his musical compositions through his father’s love of poetry, especially poetry by English poets, which he considers to be his heritage.

Mulholland combines love of singing, composition and poetry in his compositions.  He said 90 percent of his compositions are vocal compositions, whether joined by piano or an ensemble.  While he mainly writes vocal compositions, he said he wants to begin writing more pieces for piano.

With commission bookings throughout the year 2014, Mulholland has become one of the most commissioned composers of his generation.  Over his career, he has commissioned more than 600 compositions.

As a full-time professor, Mulholland said it is often difficult to find time to compose. He said he has forced himself to compose at least four hours everyday.

“The one thing that a person that writes has to have is discipline,” Mulholland said. “You are your boss.  You’re your own quality control.”

His work has not gone unrecognized.

Mulholland is the recipient of the Butler University Medal of Distinction, the State of Indiana Sagamore of the Wabash award, the State of Indiana Distinguished Hoosier award, the Louisiana State University School of Music Alumnus of the Year award and the City of Indianapolis Proclamation Distinguished Citizen award.

Students and faculty also recognize the achievements of Mulholland.

Music and fine arts librarian Sheridan Stormes said Mulholland’s work has brought prospective students to Butler.  Prospective students auditioning at Butler often mention a love for his music.

Sophomore marketing and Spanish major Lauren Ezell said she appreciates Mulholland not only as a famous composer but as an outstanding teacher as well.  Ezell is in Mulholland’s music and action class.

“He is a patron of the arts, but he’s still very realistic and down-to-earth,” Ezell said. “The first class we tried to find out more about his fame as a composer, but he was really humble about it and didn’t like talking about himself.”

Even though Ezell isn’t a music major, she said she appreciates the fact that Mulholland understands that he isn’t always teaching students who have an innate passion for music.

“He teaches students by inspiring them to develop an appreciation for music,” Ezell said, “Even if they never appreciated music before.”

Administrators closed Lilly Hall on Monday night after more than four inches of raw sewage flooded the building’s basement, which administrators said created a potential biohazard.

By Tuesday morning, regularly scheduled classes went on as usual, although bathrooms and running water were unavailable.

The reason for the foul problem was that the sewage ejection pump system failed, said Gerald Carlson, director of maintenance services.

Students who were in the building’s practice rooms were evacuated after Ben Hunter, Butler University’s chief of staff and executive director of public safety, made the call that the building wasn’t safe to be in.

Sophomore Kelsey Nylin said she was supposed to work on a theater project with a friend in Lilly Monday night, but they had to move to Jordan Hall to practice because of the sewage.

Nylin said she could smell the sewage on Monday, but by the time classes resumed on Tuesday, she didn’t smell anything unusual.

A crew worked on Monday night to clean up the sewage. The incident caused damage that was limited to some damage to filters and supplies that were on the building’s mechanical room floor.

After the building was evacuated Monday night, the community reacted online.

The new Butler University memes page was updated twice about the Lilly sewage incident.

Junior Brian Skinner posted an image of an angry stick figure with the text “DAWG ALERT: Y U NO Alert?” and a caption that reads, “For all those that tried to get in Lilly tonight…”

Another meme, posted by senior Karl Watson, is a screen shot from the movie “Bridesmaids” that said, “What did Lilly Hall eat?”

Seventeen Facebook users “liked” the meme.

Sophomore Maggie Carey tweeted about the sewage leak.

“The Lilly Hall poo fiasco,” she tweeted from her handle @MaggieCareyyy. “#pleasecancelclass.”

Butler junior Justin Rustle posted a Facebook status about attending classes on Tuesday.

“So apparently Lilly Hall will be open tomorrow, we just won’t be able to use the bathrooms or the water… boycott of classes in Lilly tomorrow?” he posted.

A new system will be installed when parts are located, Carlson said.

Through movement and placement, Butler’s theater department and its chair William Fisher create a performance rife with deception, class tension and mistrust. 

William Fisher absentmindedly flicks his dark-rimmed glasses behind his desk.

“I don’t think theater is plays,’” he says. “Theater exists, and plays are a part of theater.”

Since becoming the chair of Butler’s theater department last year, Fisher has directed two productions: “Small Lives, Big Dreams” and now “Tartuffe,” which opens on Friday.

He has brought to the Jordan College of Fine Arts a philosophy of directing that emphasizes the natural tendencies of actors, creating productions that present life truths in a real way.

Specifically, Fisher concentrates on movement.

“There’s no better way to lie than through words,” he said.  “The body doesn’t lie.”

Fisher’s approach to theater was developed before coming to Butler.  He lived and studied in France, concentrating on movement theater.

During rehearsals, Fisher concentrates on the spatial relationships of the actors.

At times he moves them closer together or farther apart or demonstrates a particular gesture that convey the emotions of
the characters.

Concerns like, “Is it OK if I cross the stage here? I feel stuck,” are taken very seriously.

In a rehearsal for “Tartuffe” last week, one scene was performed over and over again. The actors each came in with a well-developed character and sense of the scene, and Fisher brought his keen direction.

By the end, the actors were moving more fluidly and believably with the spoken lines flowing naturally in context with the actions and reactions of the actors.

Junior theater major Lauren Batson, who is the stage manager for “Tartuffe,” said that she is learning a lot from Fisher’s directing style.

“The actors have this opportunity to play around with their character and explore new ideas,” Batson said.  “Professor Fisher also does a great job of asking us, as students, lots of questions. It becomes a collaborative process instead of the director simply telling everyone what to do.”

Fisher said that he encourages students to take an equal responsibility in the craft of the production, a process called ensemble creation.

He said he wishes the students would take even more freedom in the development of the characters and the show. The one thing he doesn’t like actors to say is: “What do you want here?”

Shane Tarplee, a junior theater major who is playing the role of Tartuffe in the production, said he has really benefitted from this approach.

“‘Tartuffe” has been a great experience that feels more professional than any school show I have ever done,” he said. “I feel like I am respected and treated as a professional.”

“Tartuffe, ou l’Imposteur” is the story of a wealthy land-owning family that falls for the false guise of Tartuffe, a fraud who claims complete piousness while hiding more sinister motives.

“Tartuffe” is a challenging play. It is challenging for the actors, who must memorize lines and lines of rhyming couplets and present them naturally.

The play is also challenging for the audience since the story deals with deception, class issues and the ease with which trust can be manipulated and extorted.

The Butler theater department has a history of not shirking from challenging material, and Fisher said he would not have it any other way.

For him, a play needs to pose hard questions and be forward-looking.

“Theater is about learning how to be human or to be better at being human,” Fisher said.

For this reason Fisher said he does not feel compelled to present a play exactly as it was written or to follow convention in production. Making a play current is an important part of directing, though he said this does not exclusively involve taking the play out of the period in which it is set.

Fisher’s “Tartuffe” is set in modern times, but he said the play resonates at other time periods in history as well, namely post-Depression America and Huey Long’s Louisiana, the character Tartuffe not-so-subtly resembles a southern evangelical in Butler’s production.

The period chosen, Fisher said, is not an exact parallel. It is meant to highlight the class differences between the poor and wealthy that plague our society and also hints at possible wars that have taken place before the play begins.

Fisher’s unique naturalistic direction and willingness to break theater codes, coupled with the professional and enthusiastic team of actors, student managers and professors, make “Tartuffe” a must-see.

Batson said she would love for more students to come to the Butler Theater’s productions.

“The entire department works so incredibly hard to complete every aspect and detail of the show, and we would love to share our creations with everyone,” she said.

“Tartuffe” opens on Friday in the Butler Theater at Lilly Hall, and will run for two weekends.

Jordan College of Fine Arts students and faculty members will soon have more room for expression.

Renovations are under way to turn the former Jordan Academy of Dance building into the Jordan College of Fine Arts Annex.

About 50 percent of the space in JCX will be dedicated to the art + design program, with the other half available for dance studio space and other JCFA functions starting next fall.

Elizabeth Mix, an associate professor of art, said that gaining two large spaces—one that will serve as a studio and the other as a classroom—will allow art + design students to work in a dedicated space.

“We desperately needed actual art studios,” she said. “We were making art in music rooms, and that’s not really conducive to making art.”

The move will also allow art faculty members to have offices together that are close to their classrooms. Currently their offices are spread around the Fairbanks Building while most of the classes are taught in Lilly Hall.

While the walk to the building may be a little longer, Mix said the move will benefit students.

“Students who are here right now realize that they don’t have this kind of space,” she said.

Laura Kramer, a senior strategic communication and art + design major, said having to move projects around and empty a room at the end of class can hurt the artistic process. Other than simply being a place to store art, the new studios will help with this routine.

“You’ll be able to know that it’s going to be a creative environment, and you’ll be surrounded by other students who are also working,” she said.

Ben Fox, a junior philosophy and art + design major, said that it can be difficult to work on art projects in dorm rooms or around other people. He said the new space will attract more students to the program and help the existing students work better.

“Quality goes up when you have space to work in,” he said. “You get a lot more thoughtful work.”

Since before the dawn of computers, man has expanded the capabilities of electricity and technology in music, seeking to express beauty and reality as potently as through the traditional symphony, poem or fresco.

The Electronic Music Festival at Butler University celebrates the accomplishments of electronic music­—a genre born of software, circuits and wires. The pieces featured on the program make use of altered recorded and synthesized electronic sounds.

The concert is programmed by Frank Felice, an associate professor of music, who is no stranger to this electronic genre. Felice said that his love for the art form grew from his participation in rock ‘n’ roll bands in high school and jam sessions in his garage.

Since entering the realm of art music from his rock foundations, Felice has done much work with electronic music, including a record released with Capstone Records called “Sidewalk Music.”

Felice said the concert features works from both professional composers and students.

Describing how he picked which works to program, he said, “In many ways it’s like curating any other concert,” where the goals are variety, uniqueness and a mastery of technique.

Student composers said the electronic medium provides a new outlet for musical expression.

Brian Spicklemire, a graduate composition student who has a piece in the concert, said he likes having no limitations and complete creative control.

“I can create or manipulate virtually any sound I can think of,” Spicklemire said.

Graduate student and composer Drew Worthen said that while it is true that with electronic music “you are not limited to the comparatively few sonic resources that the orchestra has to offer,” he prefers to have the human element of performers in his pieces.

His piece on Sunday’s program features recordings of three actual trains from various times of history, calling to mind Steve Reich’s hybrid piece “Different Trains.”

Felice said he believes experimentation is an important part of working with electronic music.  This musical genre seems naturally averse to conformity and Sunday’s concert appears to be full of novel approaches and refreshing uniqueness.

The Electronic Music Festival is free and open to the public.  It is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Jan. 29 in Lilly Hall.