Last week the School of Theatre, Film & Television debuted Vaud, the new original work created and directed by Wolfe Bowart and co-created and performed by BA Theatre students. The production was devised, rehearsed, and staged over 28 days, and opened in the Tornabene Theatre on Dec. 1, 2022.
Drawing inspiration from the American Vaudeville Museum Archive at the University of Arizona Libraries, the group created a fantastical and poignant story about finding home, complete with magicians, stilt walkers, roller-skaters, shadow puppeteers, ballerinas, magicians and ukulele players.
Director/co-creator Wolfe Bowart, and co-creators/ensemble members Ellie Seward and Sam Lewis discussed Vaud with Mark McLemore, host of AZPM’s Arizona Spotlight.
“We looked at Vaudeville, which was a very exciting and eclectic and mixed-up time – almost like today’s TikTok – and we decided to tell stories that were important to us,” said Bowart. “We took the concept of Vaudeville and we created a story about a person coming from a far-away place and finding a home in theatre, because I think a lot of us can identify with that.”
Click below to listen. The interview begins at 16:22.
Listen on AZPM