Interview: A Moment with Rollins Student Director Kathleen Capdesuñer on CONSTELLATIONS

Last year BroadwayWorld Orlando interviewed Rollins student Kathleen Capdesuñer when she directed DETROIT. This year Kathleen directed CONSTELLATIONS as her final piece before graduation. I had a chance to catch up with Kathleen to talk about the show.

Hi Kathleen. It's been awhile since we last chatted. What have you been up to since you finished directing DETROIT?

I can't believe it has been almost a year since I directed DETROIT. I have been up
to quite a lot since then. During the summer, I joined the Student-Faculty Collaborative Research team completing historical and artistic research for the creation of Upton Abbey: An Improvised Comedy of English Manors, a production a later starred. Grace Zottig and I devised an original, site-specific performance entitled SHAME, which is an audience driven piece that we workshopped at Rollins during the Fall semester. SHAME will be at the Orlando Fringe Festival and Edinburgh Fringe Festival later this year. CONSTELLATIONS is my final directing opportunity at the Fred Stone Theater and I couldn't be prouder to share this passion project of mine.

Wow I can't wait to hear and see more about your Fringe piece! CONSTELLATIONS is about relationships. It's about people who exist in space and come in and out of each other's lives. How do you tell this story?

I was very inspired by the three ideas: interconnectedness, a moment in time, and honey. In the rehearsal process I explored the concept of moving to and from micro to macro. The blocking of the actors represents these themes, as they use the whole space to tell the story. I actually blocked the show out of order, working on each section by location, not in a sequential order. This approach added to the irregular, asymmetrical elements of the text. I also drew upon lights and sound to develop symmetrical motifs, such as sounds that are repeated in specific moments of the play. This intersection aided in creating the feeling of shifts in time, and that it is all occurring all at once.

Who are your actors in this play and what were you looking for when you were casting?

I had the pleasure of working with the lovely BriAnna Barrett and Casey Casteel. In the casting process I was looking for actors who could handle the complexity of the text, had natural chemistry and magnetizing energy. I am very lucky, as the two actors were able to pull off what I consider the "olympics of acting." They were able to truly dig into the text and develop their own version of Marianne and Roland (something that I adore about Payne's script). Both of the actors made the work look natural and effortless; another quality I looked for in the casting process. One of my favorite moments in the play is the universe in which they communicate completely in American Sign Language. None of us knew ASL before, and they picked it up for the show-- another feat I commend them for!

I've heard this play described as a beautiful story of love. The world needs more love and less hate. What do you hope the audiences comes away with after seeing this show?

Yes, I like to say this play is about love framed through a scientific lens. Marianne's fascination with science and Roland's love for bees shows that we are part of something much larger. This feeling of engaging in something bigger than myself is why I am a theatre artist.

On the first day of rehearsals I read the famous Pale Blue Dot speech by Carl Sagan to the actors. Just as Sagan reminds us to be kinder to each other, CONSTELLATIONS encourages us to love, even if you feel there is no more left in you to give. I hope the audience is reminded of this feeling, and understands my call to action.

CONSTELLATIONS is your last show as a Director before you graduate. What has the experience been like for you throughout the entire program?

My experience has been one of a kind. During my four years I have done the unimaginable: I studied in London, hosted a Pulitzer-Prize finalist on campus, and improvised in Shakespeare. As a driven artist, I found the faculty and students to be incredibly supportive and instrumental in achieving my goals. If you really are passionate about a project, you have all the resources to make it happen. Rollins further solidified that sense of entreprenuralship in me. I thank the Rollins College Theatre department for providing a space in which I could develop ideas and run wild with them!

CONSTELLATIONS ran at Rollins College's Fred Stone Theater from February 1-4, 2017. For information about the remaining season visit www.rollins.edu/annie-russell-theatre/fred-stone-theatre.

Watch a trailer for the show below!

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Photo Credit: Lisa York

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