The Butler theatre department is taking the theme of revolution to a whole new level this week with the opening of Lunar Revolution 2.0.
Over the past few months, the cast and director William Fisher have been collaborating to create this devised piece based on Schoenberg’s 1912 melodrama, Pierrot Lunaire.
Although Fisher said a bulk of the play is based on Pierrot Lunaire, Fisher’s other inspiration was the moon landing of 1969.
“I’m old enough to have watched when we first landed on the moon, and I thought that was the culmination of a great national and personal sense of accomplishment and aspiration,” Fisher said.
“From this I was curious to find out, ‘What does it mean to aspire or what is the analogy for ourselves today of how we get to the moon, and what does it mean to get to the moon?’”
Fisher’s questions were able to influence each of the show’s seven sections.
While most shows are developed by analyzing script and rehearsing, William Fisher created Lunar 2.0 in a roundabout way.
“We developed our own structure for the performance,” Fisher said. “We would develop sections of the play, and the play actually got written in the end. Decisions were made based on our work in rehearsal and on improvisations, small exercises or texts we brought in from other sources.”
Though Fisher is the director, he was determined to make sure the cast had an active role in developing the script.
Freshman Emily Bohn, a performer in the show, saw how Fisher let the cast help immensely in the creative process.
“William is the director, but he likes to make sure that we know that this was our project, not just his,” Bohn said “He really made sure that it is all of us collaborating to make the show.”
For cast members watching how the performance changed day to day, it became interesting to see how this turned into a show.
Freshman theatre major Claire Kedjidjian, assistant stage manager, said she has her doubts on some rehearsal days.
“Some days I would watch a section and wonder how this would turn into anything that could be understood,” Kedjidjian said. “But as we finished the ending you can really see it turn into a piece that will make you think.”
The show begins with previews Wednesday and Thursday at 8 p.m. The official opening is April 12 at 8 p.m. at Butler Studio Theatre in Lilly Hall.
The show will run until April 21.
Tickets will be $5 for Butler students with an ID.
