Fall 2018 Variety Show

I am happy to announce that the Board met last week [minutes] and voted to convene a Show Council for a Fall 2018 variety-style show! As your president, I want to explain what we envision for this show and to ask for your help in making it happen.

NOTE: if are looking for specifics like application due dates, they are at the end of the post, and in the calendar to the right. However, I hope you will read the rest of this for the background information.

What we want to do: the plan is to run a Variety Show in the coming fall term, in addition to the regular full-length show in the winter term of 2019. The show would contain a small amount of original FASS content like you would find in a traditional show – scenes, jokes, songs, dancing, possibly re-used from previous years or acting as preview for the winter show. Additionally, anyone can submit and perform a short skit or other performance – kind of like a talent show. Finally, we will invite other on-campus groups to participate and perform guest acts.

Those who participated in, or watched the 2017 show will find these ideas familiar. Just think of all the things we can do with 3 months of preparation time!

Why we want to do this: first and foremost, we are doing this because FASSies want more opportunities to do FASS! You don’t want to wait an entire year (or two, if away on co-op). This is a way to keep the momentum of our amazing 2018 show alive.

A more tactical reason is to help introduce new students, especially first-years, to the magic of FASS. Most people see a FASS show before they participate, so we could shorten the recruitment cycle by a year. It also gives us a more tangible call-to-action at Fall clubs day – come to this thing happening within a month or two, rather than next term.

Finally, it gives us a strategic opportunity to experiment with new venues, show formats, recruitment strategies, and to practice planning multiple shows in parallel. This experience will be critical in helping FASS evolve and survive as an organization.

Where and when: we don’t have all the answers yet, and we want to give the future Show Council maximum flexibility in planning and running the show. (After all, the Board will have a Winter show to plan in the Fall.) Here are some rough ideas based on informal discussions by the Board.

Timing: roughly in the second half of the fall term, possibly early November. This should give enough time to advertise, recruit, and audition, while taking advantage of events like Clubs Day and avoiding major distractions like Thanksgiving and mid-terms.

Venue: we are looking for a venue that is highly visible or at least easily accessible to the University community. We are willing to sacrifice technical sophistication for a large audience at a lower price. That means looking at the SLC, classrooms, or even residences/colleges.

We have also discussed the possibility of a travelling show visiting different residences, perhaps in addition to a main performance.

Who we are looking forthis is the part where I ask for your help to make this show happen! We are looking for people who are willing to work outside the traditional FASS model and help us figure out many of the details that are normally set in stone for a full show. While the Constitution dictates the basic makeup of the Show Council, we expect the responsibilities to be more fluid, with new roles added or traditional roles combined.

  • Chief Script Writer would be responsible for curating, creating, and otherwise procuring the content for the FASS portion. They may assist wth sourcing one-off skits and guest acts.
  • Producer would be responsible for coordinating with guest acts on marketing, venue, and show time.
  • Director, Tech Director, and Stage Manager would maintain their traditional roles for the FASS portion. The Stage Manager may work with the Producer to coordinate guest acts during the show run.
  • We may create a new position to coordinate with guest acts, depending on the applications that we get.

If you are interested in helping out, let us know if you are interested in multiple roles or a subset of some role.

What’s next: applications for the Show Council are open as of now.

  • Chief Script Writer, Producer, Directory, and Tech Director applications will close on Wednesday, July 11th.
  • Stage Manager applications will close on Sunday, July 22nd.

We will be interviewing all positions in July. See the FASS Calendar for possible interview dates. Applications should be submitted by e-mail to apply@fass.uwaterloo.ca. Include a brief summary of your relevant experience and where you see yourself having the most impact for this show.

As always, reach out to me with any questions: prez@fass.uwaterloo.ca.

— Anton Markov, President, FASS Board of 2019