Timeline
Joanna Baillie’s Witchcraft

Three years, three productions.
Explore the Witchcraft project.

Year I

Year II

Year III

September – October 2009

Meet-and-Greet of Cast and Dissemination of Creative Research (Matrabox), Preparation of Baillie text (adaptation and scene selection) by dramaturg.

November – December 2009

Preparation for Staged Reading of Selected Scenes, Contextual Dramaturgical Research (Matrabox)

December 11th, 2009

Staged Reading with Affiliated Scholar Presentations – Michael Sinatra, Thomas Crochunis, Jonathan Sachs (Matrabox); Discussion of eventual production for Congress 2010.

January 2010

Resonant Responses completed and read by directors. First round of dramaturgical conferences with playwrights.

February to April 2010

Performing Rehearsal Period for Baillie scenes and Resonant Responses

March 2010

  • Filming for May Congress event (Hexagram lab)
  • Joanna guest lectures in Patrick’s Playwriting Course

April 2010

Preview of show prior to Congress (Hexagram Blackbox)

May–June 2010

Run of the Show at Congress, with evening talkback session with scholar Michael Eberle Sinatra, and artistic team. (Hexagram Blackbox)

September – October 2010

Casting begins for Year II The Rhetoric of the Passions acting workshop with Cristina Iovita. Actor packet on gestural codes completed (Joanna Donehower, Nina Drystek, Anna Sigg)

October 2010

Rehearsals begin (Matrabox), Ulla completes RASABOX workshop with the actors.

November – December 2010

Debbie Sullivan completes costume and set design.

December 2010

Preliminary Presentation of scenes for interested scholars.

February 2011

Reprise of Gestural Workshop in preparation for Melodrama Conference (Melodrama at the Interface of Media and Genre, a SHRRC group led by Dr. Marcie Frank)

  • Meetings begin with theatre department for year 3 – design discussions.
  • Rough cut of entire play completed and sent to directors / designers
  • Joanna and Cristina guest lecture in Ulla’s Intro to Theatre History course.

May 2011

Filming of gestural workshop outcomes (Nika) and Final Presentation of The Rhetoric of the Passions at the Melodrama Conference, with talkback session of affiliated working group scholars. Joanna presents short paper on adaptation, melodrama, and the case of Witchcraft at the melodrama conference.

September 2011

Preliminary meetings with designers, tech folks re Witchcraft. Dramaturgs complete actor packet for distribution to actors (Joanna Donehower and Manon Manavit)

October 2011

First Read-through of full script with actors, followed by dramaturgical revisions. Presentation of previous work (year one, year two), and a bit of historical context / glossary.

  • Filming in Matrabox for projection scenes (Nika)
  • Cristina and Joanna guest lecture in Ulla’s Intro to Theatre History course.

November 2011

  • Rehearsals in the theatre department
  • November 30th – Joanna gives guest lecture in Patrick’s Playwriting Course

December 2011

Preview and Opening Night

Winter / Spring 2012

  • Creation of Witchcraft Website
  • Milford Haven: transitional project towards Cymbeline Materials.