Sarah Edmunds is a senior Theatre Major with options in Design, Technology, and Acting. During her time at Plymouth State College, Edmunds has immersed herself in all aspects of Theatre, ranging from acting to design to stage managment.
Clock: How did you first get into theatre?
SE: It was in high school, I did Drama Club in high school. I enjoyed myself, so…I actually started out at UNH as a Music Education major. And I didn’t like that at all. So I decided to go back to theatre, and that’s when I came up here. I just didn’t like UNH much, and I knew some people who went here and liked it. So…I’m here.
Clock: What are the highlights of your theatre career here at PSC?
SE: Good Lord. I was Lighting Designer for Crimes of the Heart. That was last fall, I believe. I was the Assistant Lighting and Scenic Designer for The Investigation. I have staged managed numerous times here. I was Stage Manager for As You Like It and The Bard and Broadway. I will be Stage Manager for A New Brain, coming up in November. I’m in a show right now called Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe. I play five different characters. I have been Stage Manager and acted in a bunch of the ETC [Educational Theatre Collaborative] productions during Winterm. I am the Master Painter for Silver Cultural Art Center.
Clock: As the Master Painter, what are your responsibilities?
SE: When the set designer gives his plans to everyone, I get a set of paint elevations [an example of how the finished set should look]. I look at them, and I work with the Set Designer and Assistant Set Designer and just paint the set. It should look exactly like what they rendered, what they drew. I also help the practicum students learn how to do scenic painting, because it’s different than regular painting. You need less detail on a larger scale.
Clock: Of all the shows you’ve worked on, which have been your favorites, and why?
SE: My number one favorite show that I’ve ever worked on, I was an actor in. It was Godspell, directed by Beth Cox. I had a blast; it was great. I worked with some really nice people. It was the first show I ever performed in here [at PSC], and that’s always going to stay with me. I played…I was one of the company. Mike Stoddard played Jesus, Rob Jessup played Judas, and then the rest of us were…we used our own names. My character was the more sensual one. She sang the song “Turn Back, O, Man”. She wasn’t the innocent one; she was more the one being forgiven. That was my favorite show.
Clock: Which show is your favorite as far as technical work?
SE: I always love doing lighting and scenery, but being Stage Manager gives me the most joy. I get to work with everybody in the process. I get to work with the actors, the director, the designers, the technical directors…just everyone. I have to talk with everyone, and I have my finger on every aspect of the production. It’s a big job, but it’s very rewarding, I think. I love being Stage Manager, and I’m really looking forward to doing that for New Brain. Beth Cox is going to direct that as well.
Clock: How do you keep up with the responsibilities of being Stage Manager?
SE: The hardest part of stage management is communication between everyone, keeping everyone clear on what the heck is going on. To do that, you have to really like to talk to people, which I love to do. You have to understand that you can talk to one person in one way and get direct answers, and they know where they are. But you have to go up to another person in a totally different way. You have to know those ways, and how to read people. The way to keep everyone communicating is to make sure they know your face. You have production meetings. You keep everyone talking. That’s the hardest part. Everything else is fun.
Clock: When you’re acting, how do you go about “finding” your character?
SE: Oh, boy. When I look at a character, there has to be something in the character that Sarah can relate to. I take that feeling…and it’s a massive process. I go through my script a thousand times, and score it, do all the technical things I have to as an actor, and work with the director on what they want for the character. Once I know what they want, then I can sit down and think about what they move like and what kind of vocal quality they have. To connect with them, I find something in them that I understand. In my little experience in life, I still have something that I can connect with almost anyone. Everyone feels pain. Everyone’s happy.
Clock: What are your plans after graduation?
SE: Well, I’m going to have a hell of a lot of fun. I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m going to keep doing theatre. Half the excitement for me is that I don’t know what the hell’s going to happen. I’ve thought about graduate school, but I’m not big into going to more school. I want to go out there and work, get a job that applies to theatre. I can always stage mange and design. Here’s something every single stereotypical theatre person says: ‘But what I really want to do is direct.’ Everybody says that, but I do; I want to direct.