Time to update on the past year!
I just finished uploading my photos from my production of "Godspell" at ACU this past Spring. It was a great experience full of unique challenges and rewards. It's been an honor to get to know my students and department here at Abilene Christian University. The students are dedicated, talented, and fantastic collaborators and I'm looking forward to our next projects together. Over the summer I accepted an acting contract with Festival 56 theatre in Princeton, Illinois. Over two months, I performed as Malvolio in "Twelfth Night," Reverend Shaw in "Footloose," and a few great characters in "Something Rotten." The acting company was kind and it just felt great to get back on the stage again, since, thanks to the pandemic, it had been almost four years since I had done so. I'll be uploading pictures from those performances to my acting section as well. Next up, I am directing our Fall Homecoming musical, "Matilda." I am currently deep into the rehearsal process and we open in mid-October. After that, I will be preparing to direct our Spring musical, "High School Musical" which will open in late April. Here's to a successful second year at ACU! - J
0 Comments
It's been a year since the last update, but it's been a busy one!
In the Spring of 2022, I spent my time directing Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street with my students at Southwestern University. This was my fifth musical I've done for them and it was easily the toughest, but I was very proud of our production team and cast as they rose to the challenge of a monumentally difficult piece of art. In the Summer of 2022, I returned to Zilker Theatre to direct their production of Newsies and this was one of the most special experiences in my life. The cast was so incredible and the work they put onto that stage for six weeks straight was full of heart and love. It was a beast of a show, but it was a hell of a summer. In addition, the big news to announce is that I have accepted a new professorship at Abilene Christian University where I will be teaching Acting & Directing courses to their talented department of students. It's a tenure track Assistant Professor role and I was honored to be given this opportunity. My family and I moved to Abilene in early August and are getting settled and comfortable in our new home. Classes begin in a week so I'm currently sitting in my new office preparing for the semester. The next project on the horizon? Godspell in the Spring! JB It has been (and continues to be) a wild time to be practicing theatre. The pandemic has shut down so many different avenues and opportunities and our community is trying to keep our heads above the flood waters. And yet, we have been able to take some significant steps forward.
Me? I spent the past six months or so directing and producing two musicals. At Southwestern University, we were able to, within safety guidelines, stage a production of Bright Star as a concert version. It was masked, distanced, and yet fully produced. Images of this production are available now on my "Director" page. The summer was spent working with Zilker Theatre, a local company that has been putting on a summer musical for the Austin community for over 60 years, and staging the first fully-produced musical since the pandemic began. It was outdoors, but unmasked. It felt like a return to some sense of normality and it was a pleasure to direct Little Shop of Horrors over the past few months. It ran for about 24 performances over six weeks and the audiences were vibrant. Images of this production are also available on my "Director" page. In addition to all of these professional updates, I have a very large personal update! On June 4th, my wife and I welcomed to our family our new baby daughter, Elowen Boni Banks. She's a little over two months now and it has been a whirlwind! I will say... directing a large stage musical WHILE taking care of a newborn baby was quite the challenge and really allowed me to see how much caffeine my body could handle at any given time. We love her very much and hope the next year is a good one as I prepare to go into pre-production for my Fall show which I hope to announce in the near future. Well.
It's been a year, hasn't it? The last time I checked in was pre-pandemic and since then we've all been through a lot. As a theatre community, certainly, but also as citizens. My focus with creating staged works has always been how can we best communicate with our audiences. How do we empathize with them? How do we share their stories? How do we start tough conversations? So, it shouldn't come as surprise that I, like many of you, have felt such frustration with not being able to do the things we love due to this terrible time in the world. And yet... I still see such optimism and hope for what theatre can become during this time. Yes, the majority of us are shut down, but we are adapting. We are trying. We are working. Southwestern University's production of Little Women: The Musical was lucky to finish its run the weekend before quarantine hit. It was a blessing to see my actors and crew finish a very successful run of a show that told a beautiful story of kindness. We would all soon need it. I was slated to direct Mamma Mia Summer 2020, but we had to postpone it until Summer 2022. It's certainly a tough decision, but the good news is that I am still being asked to return to direct with the same creative team, so I am excited for the opportunity to bring some escapism to Austin audiences in the future. I do have some new projects to announce! Rehearsals have just begin for Southwestern University's production of Bright Star: The Concert Version. I've never had to direct a socially-distanced musical before, so the challenge will stretch muscles I haven't had to use before and I am leaning into it. We have quite a strong cast of singers and a University and Department that are helpful, encouraging, and ensuring we are all safe. We are being tested weekly. Masks are required. Distanced, of course. Southwestern has even built an outdoors stage for this season. I'm very proud to work for a University that takes such strong precautions. The other project is still a bit of a secret, but it will be the Zilker summer production of 2021. We will open that in July and the only hint I can give is: it's a popular musical that we are bringing to the hillside with a cast of Austin favorites. Be safe out there everyone. - JB Very happy to announce my next two projects.
Currently, I am directing the musical, "Little Women" at Southwestern University which opens in the last weekend of February and runs for two weeks. Then, I begin casting and the pre-production process for the Zilker Summer Musical. I'm honored to have been selected to direct "Mamma Mia!" for this years Zilker production. The Zilker summer musical has been a staple of Austin theatre for 60 years and while I've performed on that stage, this will represent my first time directing on that stage. Please come out and audition for us in March! - JB I'm finishing up our semester at Southwestern University and enjoying spending my time with a "Departures of Realism" class and the production/design team for our Spring production of "Little Women."
Also, I am currently in the rehearsal process for the Austin Playhouse musical, "She Loves Me." It's a great show and a great group of actors. I haven't had the chance to sing on stage for about a year or so I am very happy to have the opportunity to deliver this show in a week or so. Come out and say hello! I also have some very exciting news about a new project for the upcoming summer. Stay tuned! JB It. has. been. a. summer.
Honestly, it all flew by. I've been encumbered with project after project (haven't had a night off since May 1st) after performing in Austin Playhouse's The Book of Will and directing Tex-Arts' Annie, I opened a play I wrote, directed, and acted in with my brand new theatre company, Haymaker Players. I'm happy to say that "Tail End Charlie" was a success for us. We turned a nice profit and our company is now in talks about when to produce our second show. The summer has been exciting, stressful, and worthwhile, but I am ready for a break. Luckily, I am not due back in rehearsal until late October. I've accepted the role of "Georg" in She Loves Me and I'm very eager to get started, but I'm grateful for the month and a half off. I'm going to spend it resting, writing, and putting together the new house we bought. Also, auditions for my production of Little Women at Southwestern University happen at the end of this month, so I am looking forward to seeing our students put their best feet forward. Here's to a restful start of the Fall, and for a return to the stage in November 2019. - JB Summer 2019 is getting close and I'm happy to announce my next two projects!
In early May, I will go into rehearsal for Austin Playhouse's production of "The Book of Will." I will be taking on the role of Isaac Jaggard. Very excited to get back on stage at the Playhouse and play around with some of my favorite local Austin actors! We open May 31st and run for four weeks! In late June, I switch hats in order to direct "Annie" at TexARTS in Lakeway, TX. This is a bit of a new direction for me, but I'm excited to take a stab at such a classic piece of musical theatre. I will, of course, insist that we cast a cute pupper. We open July 12th and run for four weeks. And, as previously announced, in late July I start rehearsals for a play I wrote and will be directing, "Tail End Charlie." We open August 18th and run for three weekends. Here we go! Today marks the beginning of the last weekend of "Heathers" at Southwestern University.
It has been such a pleasure to work with these students and direct this production. I've always had a fondness, as an actor and director, of these niche/darker pieces of musical theatre and to work on one with such a varied and talented creative team has made the last few months very rewarding. While it will be nice to put this one to bed after a successful run, I will miss it. As I head into the end of March, I can start thinking about the process of changing hats. As Artistic Director of Haymaker Players, the next project I will be working on is an original play I wrote called Tail End Charlie. We've been doing reading workshops over the past 6 weeks and the final version of it is close to being complete. We will start holding auditions for it in April and we go into production in July for an August opening at Trinity Street Theatre in Austin, TX. Here's to the next one, JB |
JBWhat's new? What am I working on? What's next? Read on. Archives
September 2023
Categories |