One Small Step

One Small Step
Theater	The Hideout Theatre
Directed by	Andreas Fabis Jessica Arjet
Tech Director(s)	Michael Yew
Cast	Amanda Hinsman Aspen Webster Cagney Ortiz Chris Canada Cindy Page Courtney Ray Goodson David Ronn Luis Salinas
Crew	Donnie Garcia (sound) Ripley Adams (lights)
Run	Feb 2015

One Small Step was the February 2015 student mainstage production at The Hideout Theatre. The run was extended with an extra show on March 7th.

Summary

The show played its space genre in a generally straightforward way, rather than acting as a knowing sendup. It drew from a variety of works in and around the genre, including Firefly, The Abyss, and (especially) Space Station 76.

Show Structure

The show ran approximately 75 minutes in the upstairs theater, with a ten-minute intermission. All eight cast members played every night.

After the directors did the usual hosting and warmup, the show opened with the cast taking the stage (to David Bowie's "Space Oddity") and standing in a dramatic wedge formation. The frontmost performer would ask the audience for the type of voyage (e.g., warship, missionary trip, etc.) and an everyday problem that a crew member might have (e.g., daddy issues, drug addiction, etc.).

The show then began with the ship's launch from earth. What followed was a narrative show that followed several concurrent storylines over the ship's years-long journey, focusing on the personal and relationship troubles the passengers and crew experienced along the way. While the show was not designed to follow a single protagonist, one storyline often became predominant in a given show.

At some point in each performance, the ship's alarm would sound. At that point, the performers would abandon the current scene and show a quick montage of different characters' response to the alarm. There were also computer-diary monologs.

Each performance ended with the first step on the destination planet.

Costumes

Each stage performer had a uniform consisting of black clothes decorated with brightly-colored duct tape, as per their own designs.

Tech

The show included light scoring. Party scenes typically had jazz/bossa nova music. The last scene before intermission featured a slow-motion sequence set to the initial fanfare of "Also Sprach Zarathustra". The landing at the end of the show had appropriately dramatic orchestral sounds.

The show also included a special sound effect and thrust spotlighting for the computer-diary sequences, and appropriate sound effects for the initial countdown/takeoff. The alarm sequence featured a klaxon sound effect, a red wash, and foreboding ambient music.

Publicity Blurb

From the Hideout web page:

"Space – terrifying and vast, only the bravest men and women will face this final frontier. Locked together in their lonely space ship these intrepid explorers will face a journey full of discovery, danger and romance. One Small Step follows these bold space travelers as they improvise their way from lift-off to touchdown on their new distant planet. From hilarious moments of triumph over everyday obstacles like eating in Zero G to thrilling space walks, this improvised comedy features some of The Hideout’s upcoming best and brightest performers in a brand new show directed by Jessica Arjet and Andreas Fabis."

Media

Videos

• Video of the 2/15/2015 show at the Hideout Theater
• Video of the 2/22/2015 show at the Hideout Theater
• Video of the 2/29/2015 show at the Hideout Theater
• Video of the 3/7/2015 show at the Hideout Theater

Photos

• Photoset by Steve Rogers of the 2/7/15 performance.
• Photoset by Chad Wellington of the 2/14/15 performance.
• Photoset by Chad Wellington of the 2/21/15 performance.
• Photoset by Chad Wellington of the 2/28/15 performance.
• Photoset by Michael Yew of the 3/8/15 performance.
• Photoset by Michael Yew of the 3/8/15 performance.

More Information

• The show announcement on the Hideout's facebook group.
• Aspen Webster's Blog entry on One Small Step