There are nine productions in the new season of theater at Western Michigan University: everything from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet to the musical The Wiz. Behind the scenes, faculty and students are prepping everything from scripts, to sets, to advertising, as they launch a non-stop year of drama, comedy, musicals, and more.
Emily Duguay is the director of theater arts management. Her students learn the ins and outs of putting on a show and pulling in audiences. Jay Berkow is the director of music theater. He says the season is designed with care by the faculty under the guidance of department chair Joan Herrington.
After a discussion of how the faculty and staff strive to encourage and challenge students with all aspects of live theater, Berkow and Duguay summarize each production of the upcoming season.
