Like many, Alora Simon was enthralled by the TV show The Walking Dead when it aired, though she found herself tuning in for more than just the drama.
She was there for the blood and the zombies. Or, more accurately, the special effects.
When she saw Marshlight Theatre needed a production designer for a zombie-focused play, she figured she was the right person for the job—even if these zombies are less grotesque and dangerous than those she saw on TV.
”I entered this process with this image of grimy, sticky zombies. It turns out to be a lot more fun, comical zombies than anything,” she said. “But I do believe my interest in the undead really helped me go forward with this process.”
That pivot from what she envisioned in her head to what became the reality of the play – the balance of imagination against practicality – is something Simon always enjoys when designing costumes or painting sets for Marshlight productions, and Zomblet was no different.
Listen to the audio below:
Firsts
The play, to be staged outdoors by the Quanset hut behind the Salvation Army at the corner of Bridge Street and Weldon Street, was written by Halifax playwright Dan Bray. It marks the first time Marshlight Theatre will be staging something outside the confines of its own small theatre on Fairfield Road, said director Paul Griffin.
“ When I first read it, I thought, ‘oh, I’d love to do this, but there needs to be some blood,’ and doing that inside a theatre means clean up every two seconds during the show. That would be difficult. And that’s when I went, ‘what if I did it outside?'”
Having the play outside helps with some of the complexity, like handling a cast more than three times the size of most Marshlight productions. But it also made other aspects more complicated, like contending with weather and full setup and teardown for each performance.
And that doesn’t even include all the props, costumes and special effects like severed hands, intestines and figuring out how to make someone projectile vomit blood.
That’s where production manager Samantha Neate’s experience in event management helped.
Even though she had never produced a play before, she knew how to handle the logistics and make sure every member of the team knew what was expected of them on the day.
“ I do get knots in my tummy every once in a while, but it’s all because you want the best to happen, and of course you’re going, ‘well, what, what’s the worst case scenario? How can I prepare for that, and how can I prepare for unknown situations as well?'”
Neate is not the only one helping behind the scenes for the first time either, as actor Nikol Rimski has been learning a lot while helping design puppets and set decorations, she said.
”Everyone has to work together. And even though people tend to only see the actors on stage, there wouldn’t be a show without the people behind the scenes, and it’s important to recognize them and appreciate it.”
Experimentation and communication
Every step of the way, from when Griffin and Neate began their work in May all the way through final preparations the week before showtime, has involved quickly iterating on ideas, which can come from any member of the team, said Neate.
”You kind of just get to a goal and then reassess, does it work? Is it too much? Is it not enough? Where are the snags coming? And then you go back to kind of square one, now with this new information, and try and sort of reinvent the wheel.”
All of which has been eased by how well the team communicates, thanks in no small part to stage manager Maya Casteñeda Moore. Though she came into production later, after the play she was working on was cancelled, she is no stranger to theatre in Tantramar and said having a close-knit community like ours makes her job easy. Especially with Zomblet.
”The first rehearsal I came to was really fun. I laughed practically the whole time, and I think that’s a really good sign of the environment that Paul and the actors have created.”
Zomblet runs August 14-16 and 21-23, with all shows starting at 7 pm. Tickets can be purchased online or at the show, and attendees are reminded to bring chairs or blankets to sit on as well as bug spray.
