You Just Got Jury Duty

Picture by Sarah Comer

We are very excited for our next show 12 Angry Jurors so don't be too sad if you didn't get a Clue with us the fun never stops! We have a very special drama this week that plays on the themes of the discomfort of uncertainty and doubt. These 12 jurors hold the fate of calling the verdict for a young boy, is he guilty? This weekend we get to answer that question with a cast of 12 characters who all have their own histories and biases leading them to their verdict.

Let's hear from the cast and crew about this experience putting on this show. Micheal Zarefoss who is an avid member of the company and portrays juror 4 discussed his favorite part of the show which he described to be "getting the opportunity to work alongside friends new and old in bringing to life a fascinating story filled with drama, passion, and suspense". In each show a sort of flamingo family builds its truly special and needed in serious shows like these. Which is why one of Micheals favorite parts of rehearsal "comes from us occasionally quoting our director Nick out of context". 

Vinh Nguyen the lighting operator even discusses these close bond, he said his favorite rehearsal moment is "to see how all the actors come along and to perform characters that has different ranges of personality and has different views on a certain case, and also seeing how our process in rehearsal go on is so much fun, with us cracking jokes on the littlest of things truly help us build our friendship in our cast very deeply". 

Parker Brunner who is juror 3 brings a new perspective to the show he said he is typically casted as the comedic relief of the shows he's in but the directors gave him a new thing to try. He said "getting to be a serious antagonist this time around has been a great experience that further broadened my perspective of character and acting. I truly appreciate the opportunity to act in an entirely new way". That is one part about LFC that we love the most, no one is held down by one specific character or role, we have the opportunity to test out new things and learn more about the show, the people, and ourselves along the way. I think that's why Sydney Loftin, the stage manager's favorite scene is "the last scene, with Parker and Micheal. Though there are plenty of jokes around this scene, it’s actually really sweet". 

Something even more special about this show is learning from the other majors these actors get the opportunity to learn from BFA acting major and director of 12 Angry Jurors, Nick Foster. Juror 8, Sasmitha Baskaran talked about this when asked about her favorite part of the rehearsal process she said "my favorite part is honestly the mini acting lessons we get from Nick. As someone who doesn’t really have much of an acting background, I loved learning about acting and incorporating those lessons into my performance".

The way she talked about the entire process was heartwarming even recapping her favorite memory when she said "our rehearsals are always so fun, but I think my favorite rehearsal moment was on the day we were doing the opposites of our characters and Sophie was acting insane and when I gave her the knife Shawn said don’t. That whole rehearsal was hilarious and fun but that was my favorite moment". We love to hear about all the fun little bits and things our casts and crews do in their rehearsals. Everyone gets to show off their abilities. That's why Andrew Feiszli the assistant stage manager (and assistant tech director next year) said his favorite part about LFC is all things tech and building. 

Lizzie Fisher is getting the chance to explore tech by being the sound technician for this show. That's why she said her favorite part of the process so far is "seeing the actors interact and work off of one another from the audience point of view. It's so easy to get lost in your role as an actor, but just stepping away and watching everyone's performances unfold is a really interesting experience". Lizzie has been acting in LFC for quite a few semesters but is super excited for the opportunity to take a step out of the light and into the shadows (we love tech)! Lizzie also talked about LFC as a whole and said "I just love being able to explore shows with these wonderful people. No matter how many shows I've done, I can make new friends because of the welcoming environment LFC creates. I always know I will be respected in every cast or crew I am a part of". 

If that wasn't enough for you to get to Artswest to see this amazing show then I don't know what's gonna get you there...perhaps the fact that this show is our 3rd show in a row with MURDER!!! Dun dun dun!!! So, come see 12 Angry Jurors this weekend April 12th at 7pm and April 13th at 2pm, tickets sold at the door $5 CASH ONLY!