SPENCER SMITH
Spencer is an aspiring playwright going into his third year at Brock University; majoring in Theatre - Dramatic Literature stream. While at Brock, Spencer has been privileged enough to have his written work featured in several play-reading festivals hosted by local theatre companies, including Theatre Beyond Words, Lyndesfarne Theatre Projects, and most recently, Essential Collective Theatre's 'Wine & Reading Series'. Spencer has been complimented on his unique rhythmic style and raw written voice and is eager to explore both fully in the years to come. Besides writing, Spencer has also acted in and outside of Brock University and will be making his directorial debut this upcoming January with Brock Musical Theatre's production of 'Urinetown'.
Make sure to mark your calendars for Brock Musical Theatre's upcoming prouction of Urinetown.
THURSDAY January 28th - 8PM
FRIDAY January 29th - 8PM
SATURDAY January 30th - 2PM & 8PM
THURSDAY February 4th - 8PM
FRIDAY February 5th - 8PM
SATURDAY February 6th - 2PM & 8PM
For all the details on how to get involved, how to get tickets and more check out the official website:
http://brockmusical.pbworks.com/
Or, for all you Facebook users, why not stop by their Facebook group at:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=77856088901
THURSDAY January 28th - 8PM
FRIDAY January 29th - 8PM
SATURDAY January 30th - 2PM & 8PM
THURSDAY February 4th - 8PM
FRIDAY February 5th - 8PM
SATURDAY February 6th - 2PM & 8PM
For all the details on how to get involved, how to get tickets and more check out the official website:
http://brockmusical.pbworks.com/
Or, for all you Facebook users, why not stop by their Facebook group at:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=77856088901
BW: Hi Spencer, thanks for joining us. Congrats on receiving the most nominations this month. Can you tell me a bit about who you are and what you're doing here in St. Catharines??
SM: After a fairly clichéd story involving family drama and the film "Rudy", I eventually decided to follow my dreams and study theatre. The idea of Brock just seemed to have presented itself and taking it as a sign, I haven't looked back since. Brock has been a wonderfully fulfilling experience so far and I consider myself beyond lucky to be able to create and share and develop the madness in my head. And besides Brock, the rest of my life is fairly boring. My favourite colour is blue and I've been wearing Converse Chuck Taylors for seven years straight. I'm inspired by the snow in the winter and despise summer, always looking forward to school. You'll never see me without my I-pod and I live for Sunday nights - Dinner and "Brothers & Sisters" with The Boy.
BW: You will be directing the upcoming production of Urinetown as part of the Brock Musical Troupe this coming year at Brock University. Could you speak to what you expect that experience to be like and maybe reveal some kind of news about it... an exclusive, if you will?
SM: It's a mix of excitement and nausea when I think about directing "Urinetown". I've never done anything like this before! But looking back to all the directors I've worked with in my life, I've concluded that it's not a matter how much you know, but rather, how insane you are. And in that case, I'm sure I'll be fine. I'm approaching this musical a little differently than I suspect past BMT directors have to theirs. I, along with my loyal scenographer Nick Carney, have dissected the text and found something beautiful and haunting and I cannot wait to see what chaos we can birth onstage. I suppose a fairly general "exclusive" I can offer is: Imagine the film "Sin City" redirected by Tim Burton and rewritten by Mel Brooks. But even that isn't a fair representation. Either way, it will be epic!
BW: You've also had several pieces of your writing read / seen locally here in the past couple years, what does the writing experience mean to you and what types of things do you have in the works?
SM: Writing is the one thing in my life I have always been certain of. I remember writing horror films at eight years old (I was desensitized early on in life) and I always knew I'd continue writing. I'm just ecstatic to think that I might just have a future in what I hold closest to my chest. My next step being, of course, learning how to share my heart with the rest of the world. Easier said than done. In terms of anything in the works; I'm currently submitting my one-act "A Rush of Blood to the Head" into as many writing festivals as I can find. As well, I hope to have the play featured in the Toronto Fringe or SummerWorks next summer. *Fingers crossed* I've realized now that there are only so many drafts one can write and the next logical step is staging the bloody thing (pun intended). And in the grand scheme of things...after two lovely summer chats with professors Ginni and D Viv, I've begun working on the portfolio that will hopefully lead me to a grad program in either Toronto or New York. A portfolio which will include a musical-comedy; the two genres I find most challenging, so it will definitely be interesting to see what comes of it.
BW: Now for some fun questions... Do you follow a 5-second rule if anything you're eating falls to the floor? Or is it 'gone' the moment it hits the floor?
SM: Even though I can successfully fulfill the stereo-type of a 'starving artist', I still DO NOT believe in the 5 second rule. In fact, in the instance of me eating a finger-food and something falls off it onto the plate, I won't even eat the rogue nibblet. I see it as it simply wasn't meant to be. Is that weird?
BW: If you could mount a production of any show, with any cast... what would you put on, and who are some actors you'd work with?
SM: If I could mount any show it would probably be something by Peter Shaffer. I am hopelessly in love with "Amadeus" and "Equus". I also recently discovered "Angels in America" by Tony Kushner and that would be fantastic to stage one day. As for actors, I'm not too sure. Right now I'm really into the Broadway cast of "[Title Of Show]".
BW: What drink do you order first when you walk into a bar, and what do you order last?
SM: The first drink I order in a bar is a pint of Keith's and the last drink is probably a water because I've had one too many Keith's.
BW: Last question. Who would win in a thumb war challenge, best 2-out-of-3: Sarah Latka or Nick Carney???
SM: Hands down, Sarah would win. She knows how to fight dirty.
BW: You hard it here first folks. Congrats again on receiving this award Spencer. I am definitely looking forward to seeing Urinetown. Thanks for being a good sport with these questions.
SM: After a fairly clichéd story involving family drama and the film "Rudy", I eventually decided to follow my dreams and study theatre. The idea of Brock just seemed to have presented itself and taking it as a sign, I haven't looked back since. Brock has been a wonderfully fulfilling experience so far and I consider myself beyond lucky to be able to create and share and develop the madness in my head. And besides Brock, the rest of my life is fairly boring. My favourite colour is blue and I've been wearing Converse Chuck Taylors for seven years straight. I'm inspired by the snow in the winter and despise summer, always looking forward to school. You'll never see me without my I-pod and I live for Sunday nights - Dinner and "Brothers & Sisters" with The Boy.
BW: You will be directing the upcoming production of Urinetown as part of the Brock Musical Troupe this coming year at Brock University. Could you speak to what you expect that experience to be like and maybe reveal some kind of news about it... an exclusive, if you will?
SM: It's a mix of excitement and nausea when I think about directing "Urinetown". I've never done anything like this before! But looking back to all the directors I've worked with in my life, I've concluded that it's not a matter how much you know, but rather, how insane you are. And in that case, I'm sure I'll be fine. I'm approaching this musical a little differently than I suspect past BMT directors have to theirs. I, along with my loyal scenographer Nick Carney, have dissected the text and found something beautiful and haunting and I cannot wait to see what chaos we can birth onstage. I suppose a fairly general "exclusive" I can offer is: Imagine the film "Sin City" redirected by Tim Burton and rewritten by Mel Brooks. But even that isn't a fair representation. Either way, it will be epic!
BW: You've also had several pieces of your writing read / seen locally here in the past couple years, what does the writing experience mean to you and what types of things do you have in the works?
SM: Writing is the one thing in my life I have always been certain of. I remember writing horror films at eight years old (I was desensitized early on in life) and I always knew I'd continue writing. I'm just ecstatic to think that I might just have a future in what I hold closest to my chest. My next step being, of course, learning how to share my heart with the rest of the world. Easier said than done. In terms of anything in the works; I'm currently submitting my one-act "A Rush of Blood to the Head" into as many writing festivals as I can find. As well, I hope to have the play featured in the Toronto Fringe or SummerWorks next summer. *Fingers crossed* I've realized now that there are only so many drafts one can write and the next logical step is staging the bloody thing (pun intended). And in the grand scheme of things...after two lovely summer chats with professors Ginni and D Viv, I've begun working on the portfolio that will hopefully lead me to a grad program in either Toronto or New York. A portfolio which will include a musical-comedy; the two genres I find most challenging, so it will definitely be interesting to see what comes of it.
BW: Now for some fun questions... Do you follow a 5-second rule if anything you're eating falls to the floor? Or is it 'gone' the moment it hits the floor?
SM: Even though I can successfully fulfill the stereo-type of a 'starving artist', I still DO NOT believe in the 5 second rule. In fact, in the instance of me eating a finger-food and something falls off it onto the plate, I won't even eat the rogue nibblet. I see it as it simply wasn't meant to be. Is that weird?
BW: If you could mount a production of any show, with any cast... what would you put on, and who are some actors you'd work with?
SM: If I could mount any show it would probably be something by Peter Shaffer. I am hopelessly in love with "Amadeus" and "Equus". I also recently discovered "Angels in America" by Tony Kushner and that would be fantastic to stage one day. As for actors, I'm not too sure. Right now I'm really into the Broadway cast of "[Title Of Show]".
BW: What drink do you order first when you walk into a bar, and what do you order last?
SM: The first drink I order in a bar is a pint of Keith's and the last drink is probably a water because I've had one too many Keith's.
BW: Last question. Who would win in a thumb war challenge, best 2-out-of-3: Sarah Latka or Nick Carney???
SM: Hands down, Sarah would win. She knows how to fight dirty.
BW: You hard it here first folks. Congrats again on receiving this award Spencer. I am definitely looking forward to seeing Urinetown. Thanks for being a good sport with these questions.
Want to see the previous winners of Artist of the Month? Click here