This Is Who We Are

It began in 1979 as a dream in the heart of a 14 year old boy sitting in his English class. It resurfaced in 1985 while that boy, now a young man, was making grand plans for a future with his best friend. It emerged again in 1988 as that young man immersed himself in university life. Finally, in 2007, in partnership with his best friend, and for some years now, his wife, and with the help of some of the most amazing people in Fresno, the dream took on a life of its own.

Theatre Ventoux is a dream brought to life.

This is who we are.

Theatre Ventoux has a singular mission: the creation of something wonderful. Whatever else we may intend, as a company or individually, the creation of a living, breathing embodiment of wonder is the driving force behind all that we do.

Theatre Ventoux does not audition actors. We choose and design our productions around artists whose work we delight in and whose character we respect. We choose our actors for the unique gifts that they bring to each of our productions.

Theatre Ventoux has a way of working. Dubbed the Ventoux Process, we provide our actors with specific tools which we believe nourish the creative impulse and aid in channeling that impulse into the conscious creation of something wonderful. Through work on Centering and the essential acting elements of Language, Relationship, Emotion, Action, Character and Presence we seek to clarify and challenge our craft as a means to up the stakes of our art.

Theatre Ventoux offers our patrons a money-back guarantee. If, after any Theatre Ventoux performance, a patron feels their time could have been better spent elsewhere, we will promptly refund the cost of admission. Time is all that we have; if we are wasting yours, we do not deserve your money.

Theatre Ventoux is a dream brought to life. Like all dreams, it is fragileand tenuous; it exists by virtue of the faith placed in it. So long as we have the faith of our artists, the support of our patrons, and the blessings of our family, we will continue to dream the dream.

That is what we do.

That is who we are.

Dedication or Insanity?

Our cast was awesome last night. They went above and beyond the call of duty.

A storm knocked out the power at our regular rehearsal space (Greg's classroom) so we chose to have everyone to the house to run lines. This was no ordinary storm. Torrential rain, hail, wind, sheets of lightning, downed trees, flooded streets. Did that stop the "Childe Byron" cast? Nope. It took some of them a while, but they all made it safe and sound. Their steadfast loyalty and remarkable courage were duly rewarded with a huge bag of Halloween candy.

Another example of dedication or insanity: I have taken the role of Ada. I have three weeks to learn the lines. Greg has stepped in and is doing some of the directorial duties. Nora has joined us as Assistant Stage Manager. Acting was the last thing I wanted to do right now. My emotional pendulum swings between fear and anger. Work is really stressful right now (emotionally and mentally) and I am exhausted all the time. There is, though, a part of me that is so excited.


Lisa

1st Timer

Yeah, I can't believe I'm blogging, seeing how I have never blogged before, so here it goes. Wow- after watching everyone get off book I can honestly say I have never laughed so much in a rehearsal, God our cast is hilarious. It's really impressive to see how fast everyone has come to rehearsals prepared and off book. You guys rock my world. I can't wait until they can't call lines and I get to give them line notes. Which shouldn't be too many because so far most the lines are right on, I'd say about 80%- which for one full week of rehearsals is very high. I'll keep this short and sweet, just like me, keep up the great work!

So.... Here we are again...

This being my second experience with the Theatre Ventoux process I find myself taking more from the Tune-Ups than I had with "This Flattering Glass." I really love the Tune-Ups because it gives me a chance to let my world melt away and allow for my creative process to come forth. It doesn't matter what I come into the rehearsal space carrying or weighting on my mind, as soon as we focus on our breathing and start playing with the Space Ball, the world as I know it disappears for the next 3 hours and I am in the zone. It's a mini vacation from my life and playing in a life I am portraying.

"Childe Byron" is an intense, touching, and kick in the pants show that is so much fun to perform. I am loving this group of actors, most of which I've performed with before and some I've never worked with before. It really is a good range of talent.

Tonight we are to be off book. The dreaded time period (I'm sure you heard the do-do-dooooooooo music and a scream in the background) as the actors rush to make sure they know their lines better than they did last night. I spent the weekend camping and sitting by the fire memorizing my script, yes even when the drinks were getting passed around, I was memorizing my script. It's strange what we are willing to do for our art, isn't it?

I know that this week of rehearsal will be a little clunky, but that is to be expected. We are getting off book rather quickly, but I can't wait to get it out of my hands and really be able to act. I especially can't wait to further develop a particular character I am playing, knowing that it's going to be an amazing connection.

So for now, I'll be walking around my office, waltz stepping (I'll let another actor talk about the Waltz Rehearsal), memorizing and speaking in a British accent as much as I can. :-)

VLB!
AL

CHILDE BYRON: Let The Games Begin...

we begin formal rehearsals for cb tonight. more of the ventoux process, dialects, rough explorations of space and relationship, on our feet playing with what is, once again, a fantastically talented and dedicated group of interpretive artists. thanks to ebay we have our props and costumes (or most of them), thanks to steve sansebastian (fresno auction company) we have our set pieces.

i guess all that remains is to rush in where angels fear to tread...but then, we're no angels. or, perhaps we are, and angels were never what we thought they were.

at any rate: VLB!!!

etonne-moi
g