Design

Apparently, for some reason, we lost the background page design on this blog. I'll try to fix that when I get to a desktop computer.

Reconstruction of the Stage

     As you can see below, the stage we used for the Shakespeareans of Tamenend Park was destroyed and ultimate disassembled as a result of vandalism. I said "no more" and discontinued the efforts.

     Adding to that was the insertion of a new Park Director, who was not amiable to what we were doing.

     Truthfully, the stage which we built in the park was intended as a temporary stage,  being that it was not constructed of actual stone, but rather originally used for on-stage sets. I knew it would only last for so long and it was reaching the end of it's usefulness in that regard. It was a test to see if a stage in that location of the park was viable. We were considering reconstructing the stage from stone and concrete,  materials that could withstand the weather.  But the reality was that, although, we had programs under way and the community enjoyed coming there to practice their stage skills (acting and singing) and it was a wonderful stage, there too, were elements that were not as desirable (vandals and drug use).

    So it was decided to disassemble the stage and discontinue activities.

    But... it has always been the intention to rebuild the stage. Only this time it will be built as a portable stage, which can be taken down and stored away when not in use.  The method to achieving that is to emulate the core of this stage as a Parade Float. This core will be added to with extensions when the stage is being used in a Park or Festival setting.

   Below is a photo of the 1963 Corvair Greenbrier that will provide the powered chassis for the parade float, which will make up the core of the larger stage. First things first however, and the body of this truck needs to be removed and the "chassis & power-train" needs to be rebuilt before a stage can be constructed.

  

   Supplies and preparations for this work are being gathered, while the work area is also being prepared.  The Parade Float aspect of this project must take priority, since that will be used for 

"The Gnomes of New Hope: Zach & Zebby's Grand Adventure", 

but since part of using the Parade Float includes the possibility of presentation in a Festival Environment, then the extended Stage will come into play as needed for The Gnomes project. It may be that the Puppet presentation of the Gnomes may be part of the Festival Presentation, so the staging will accommodate that as well. 

    Certainly, if there Producers who think they may like to employ the Parade Float and Stage system for other projects, I am open to discussing that future potential. 

CONTACT  INFO: 

Arthur Greisiger
Image of the Mind Studios
1325 Industrial Boulevard
Building Three
Southampton, Pa 18966

 image of the mind studios@gmail.com  
412-502-9182

Portable Stage

When the stage in Tamanend Park was taken down it was a very sad thing, not only for me, but for many other people. Over the time we did Shakespeare in the Park and Cinema Under the Stars many people came to experience the stage.

Not only other performing troupes, but also many families came with their kids, who expressed their inner desires to be onstage. I often performed my flute on that stage, sometimes for other people, but mostly for God.

We had a developing workshop set up in the barn, where we stored sets, costumes, and supplies for the stage. We also had an outdoor storage area backstage for supplies.

One of the goals was to rebuild the stage out of stone, so we could eliminate the maintenance issues around the stage being made of wood.

You see, the stage that we built was done so using stage platforms I had, which were last used for the Yellow Brick Road in "The Wizard of Oz". It was intended primarily as a temporary stage, to see if the concept would work. Well, it did work, albeit not without problems. The biggest difficulty was vandalism. That was an ongoing problem. Before I took the stage down, I had filed 18 police reports. It got out if hand. When the backdrop frame was ripped down I got fed up and the Director of the Park was also unhappy with it as well.

We decided to remove the stage. It's a shame, because we had just begun discussing rebuilding the stage out if more permanent materials, stone. But we were also considering some landscaping to improve drainage in the field. I also wanted to expand the stage upward and add balconies. That would have been further problems with the juvenile delinquents who were imposing the damage and possibly be a liability in that regard. I actually determined that if I were to pursue an outdoor stage of this nature, it needed to be on private property, where it could be fenced in an locked up. That seems to be the only practical approach to security.

So I determined that I was going to rebuild the stage as a portable unit, capable of being set up in any park or other location and being a rental stage.

Nothing has happened in that regard, because my resources are being dedicated to publishing the Illustrated Storybooks of "The Gnomes of New Hope". But one interesting thing has come up in that regard.

I am intent on constructing a parade float for The Gnomes. Well, I had previously designed a stage for use in parades, because I was considering getting into the parade float business. The first designs I came up with were to be used on an old truck frame. When I showed the designs to an associate, he said he'd buy four of them. What do you know? If that were to be the case, it would have to be built on a new truck chassis, and four of them linked together would equate to a standard size stage. now all of them, however need to be powered, only of it's used for a self- powered parade float. Humm... It never got built.

I have since changed my thinking on the chassis I want to use for the self-powered portable stage. I'm going to use a Corvair Truck. The reason- elimination of the drive shaft and the flexibility that offers in having a variable length of the stage. Not that I'm planning on changing the length, although you could, but rather that I can determine the length needed for the sets and staging area and then adjust accordingly. Confirming the stage to the sets, not the sets to the stage.

The drawings for this stage/parade float are underway, but I realize that this portable stage needs to take into account the future use of it for a restart of park staging activities of various sorts.

p.s. Word has it that Southampton is considering a new amphitheatre in Tamanend Park. That would be nice, but I'm sure it would not be as intimate as The Meadow Amphitheatre was.

That's all for now. I'll update this post later.

Check the IMS Virtual Studio for other discussions.

AG

Shakespeare in Love

How can I say just how much I love this film. It is simply superb and inspired me to want to write, not just write, but to write the most excellent poetry. There have been times when my muse had engulfed my soul and the form of thoughts have manifested beyond mere words, into a flow of ideas taking shape in the expression of Love. I have volumes of words that have flowed from beyond into a form if expression where profundity abounds and the meaning takes flight, transcending the experience of this carnal life, drawing it's essence from a conception of eternity.

I long to dwell in this place, surrounded by the intensity of eternal Love, inspired by the ineffible influx of concepts that are beyond my puny and temporal form in body and mind.

Someday I will publish my writings, for no other reason than to prove that my life was worth something, for surely it is waning and will soon come to an end. For what is time if it is anything less than a flash on the horizon of eternity.

AG

Just touching base

Well, The Meadow Amphitheatre was removed from Tamenend Park a number of years ago. That resulted in Shakespearean activity coming to a close. I feel that is a temporary condition. I have been intent on rebuilding the stage as a portable unit. The reason behind that is that we will then be able to move a production to whatever location we see fit. Now to do this requires a significant effort and cost. Part of achieving the portability of the stage also includes either a trailer or the completion of my portable workshop. You can go to http://www.imagemindag.blospot.com where you may find a post on that subject.

I may continue to post here, because I do hope we can rebuilt an effort to establish a troupe. If you are interested my email is image.of.the.mind.studios@gmail.com

AG

A Special Thanks

I am impressed by the number of hits this page has been getting. Sadly, when we needed it most we had a hard time getting involvement in our programs at Tamanend Park.  After four years of effort I decided to close down the stage at the park. But have no fear, I do plan on rebuilding the stage and making a portable stage, which we can move to whichever park we care to.  For now I am busy with a new musical titled The Gnomes of New Hope: Zach & Zebby's Grand Adventure.  There has been some Shakespearean activity with BACT in Bryn Athyn and I am thinking that we might make another go at it in the future, possibly down there or out of my studio and into an assortment of parks in the region. For now, however, our buddy the bard will be waiting in the wings.

Thanks for your interest in this page. I do hope I can get back to it at another time. In the mean while, keep your interest up and if anyone wants to produce something, do let me know. Because after all the producer is the most important role to get the ball rolling. AG

An Update

I am surprised to see that there has been an increase of activity on this blog site for

The Shakespearean Journal

Sadly, I have not been focusing much energy on Shakespearean activity 

for the last two years.

After a sequence of events, I shifted over to Colonial Reenactments,

which , in fact, I've also stopped doing. However...

Here are some photograph of the stage we built in Tamanend Park 

and some of the activity that took place.

The initial stage set-up, later we added painted drops
to make it look like a stone building.

The backstage area

The stage was disassembled in 2012 due, in part to Vandalism. Here's a view of the back stage area.  I was planning on building an acting platform overhead if the stage were to become more of a permanent fixture in the park, which is something were were striving for. The next stage of operations would have been to replace the stage with another one made of stone.


We were beginning to see decay and insect infestation. I made an attempt to initiate reconstruction of the stage from stone, but again the vandal issue was such a problem for us, the township and the police that it was mutually decided that we should remove the stage.

The final blow from the vandals

 But it does get down to the fact that - the vandals in the park became too much for me and I was getting pretty angry about it.  We were all working hard to put together a nice program, but there were other  individuals with less desirable character, who somehow chose to spend their energy on destroying what we were trying to build.

The Renaissance Players

We built the stage as a test. It was a test to see if the community would step up and support this kind of creative endeavor in Southampton. I, and others, worked very hard for four years to generate interest and support for these activities. Well the interest began to grow, but the support, in terms of both money and hands-on activity, simply wasn't there.

We produced Cinema Under the Stars as a means to enhance the stage activity, but although we had an amazing set-up, which was very cozy, fun and not inexpensive to build, not enough people were willing to spend and evening under the stars to watch a movie.  It was like a "walk-in" (as opposed to a drive-in).  I found myself delighted by it, until it started costing me too much.

The stage with the screen up and ready to show movies,
 the speaker system was placed on the ends of the stage

An early set-up, later we had it more refined with a very nice array of concessions and excellent lighting

We did stage programs before it got dark enough for the movie and we did have quite a few people join us on the stage at various times. All in all, it was a wonderful opportunity for the community, but they simply did not respond sufficiently and were too busy running their kids off to sporting events to bother with what we were offering them. That became very apparent.

So the vandals made it even more difficult, but the final straw (for me) was when we were producing a Gilbert & Sullivan event in conjunction with "Topsy Turvy" and we got rained out three times.  You can see that listed below. That was it for me. I said no more outdoor theatre without an indoor back-up location. Unfortunately, in Southampton all the possible locations were being used by sporting events. There was no suitable accommodation in Southampton for theatre. (even though , as I say below, there is an amphitheater (although I have a different opinion about that space.).

So this is my touching base with those of you who have been looking at The Shakespearean Journal and I thank you for your interest. There are possibilities in the future, but for me I am busy with producing a Broadway Musical titled The Gnomes of New Hope: Zach & Zebby's Grand Adventure. You can also find more on that at The IMS Virtual Studio.