THE FRIDAY FIVE: THE NINA VARIATIONS' Jaclynn Jutting & Justin Hand

Inspired by BroadwayWorld.com's Friday Six, welcome to BroadwayWorld Nashville's latest installment of The Friday Five: five questions designed to help you learn more about the talented people you'll find onstage throughout the Volunteer state.

Today, our spotlight focuses on Justin Hand, who plays Treplev, and director Jaclynn Jutting from Verge Theatre's production of Steven Dietz's The Nina Variations, opening tonight at Belmont's Black Box Theatre and running through next weekend

Jaclynn Jutting

What was your first "live onstage" taste of theater? My aunt was a music teacher at an elementary school in rural Iowa. So my first memory of theatre was sitting in a pink lace dress watching children perform and sing Snow White.

What is your favorite pre-show ritual? I don't know that I have one. As a director, it might be different than actors. The most honest answer is probably catching a drink with a friend before curtain-which is certainly different than for actors. For opening night, I'm a big fan of thank you cards. There are always so many people to thank.

What is your most memorable "the show must go on" moment? I was the assistant director for a storefront Chicago production of King Lear about 12-13 years ago. I happened to show up at a Sunday matinee to find the cast panicked because the SM wasn't there and couldn't be reached via phone. (We found out later he was sick and had overslept.) We debated cancelling the show, but I found his prompt book and they talked me into running the show. I ran lights and sound by myself. The storm sequence was a bit different that day, but we made it through the performance.

What is your dream project? My dream project is working on a play that says something important about the world we live in-getting to create something beautiful that reflects of our humanity with talented, committed artists. Every time that happens, and I get a paycheck for it, it is a dream project.

Who's your theatrical crush? I wish I could have been a fly on the wall of Elia Kazan's room in 1947 when he worked with Arthur Miller on All My Sons or with Williams, Brando and Tandy on Streetcar Named Desire.

Justin Hand

What was your first "live onstage" taste of theater? My first taste of theatre was in the eighth grade. I was in chorus and auditioned for the Musical You're a Good Man Charlie Brown. I so had my heart set on the lead Charlie Brown; I landed Linus. Carried my blanket around at school for research. From the beginning there was a method to my madness.

What is your favorite pre-show ritual? I have a twenty minute vocal warmup routine. I also like to touch each member of the cast and backstage crew. Either shake their hand or pat their back. I've also been known to give hugs. Just make a physical connection with every person involved.

What is your most memorable "the show must go on" moment I wrote a play back in college and like most young playwrights/actors had an passionate affair with the lead actress. During the final scene before we went on, she told me she was leaving and marrying another man. During the final scene of the play her character and my character break up; the dialogue was alive and the emotion was palpable. By far, that was the most memorable must go on moment.

What is your dream role? I have a couple dream roles, but I'm not old enough yet: Shakespeare's Richard III, Albee's George. And as long as I can remember, I have fantasized playing Seymour from Little Shop. I got to play a similar character in a short film, so if it doesn't happen in this lifetime, I'll make it.

Who's your theatrical crush? Theatrical crushes are dangerous and should be avoided at all cost! Refer to question #3

About The Nina Variations:

One of Nashville's most innovative theater companies - Five Dollar Recession Theater Company - has outgrown its original name to become Verge Theater Company just in time for its premiere production of Steven Dietz's The Nina Variations.

Opening this Friday, and running May 22-24 and 28-30 at Belmont's Black Box Theater on Compton Avenue, The Nina Variations is directed by Jaclynn Jutting, head of the BFA Directing Program at Belmont University, and starring Holly Butler, Justin Hand, Kristin McCalley Landiss and Nettie Kraft.

"We were the Five Dollar Recession Theater Company but it's time to grow," says company founder Nettie Kraft. "The need for affordable theater, opportunities for young artists, expanding the theater audience, and reflecting the changing demographic of Nashville is here. Verge wants to help instill theater into this vibrant city in a powerful and lasting way.

"Our inaugural play is a contemporary, non-linear look at one of the most profound plays of Modern theater, Anton Chekhov's The Seagull. Dietz has taken the iconic final scene between Treplev and Nina and reimagined it into a treatise on love, memory, and whether we "write" our lives or have the narrative defined for us."

Tickets are pay-what-you-can with suggested prices based on age and income. For more information, go to www.vergetheaterco.org.

Production photos by John Michael Joiner

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