From the Archives: Boot and Buskin puts a kick into theater
Marianna Hirschfeld and Kathleen Maxwell
September 22, 2011
Filed under News & Features
Each week we will reprint an article from a past Dolphin issue. The following is an opinion piece published on September 13, 1984.
What is especially appealing about Boot and Buskin is that it produces the quality theater usually found only in the drama department of a large university without the rigidity or the exclusivity sometimes found in such departments. The club is open to all students and new members find that experience matters little in the club. Everyone starts from the ground up.
As a member of Boot and Buskin, students have the opportunity to work with one of the finest directors in Syracuse, Bill Morris. Bill’s extensive experience has provided him with many contacts that he brings to Le Moyne. These theater professionals work with students on all aspects of a show and expose them to a vast store of knowledge. This is a significant opportunity for not only actors and actresses, but also lighting and sound technicians, musicians, costumes and props people, and other backstage workers to learn from these trained professionals. In recent years members have worked with professional actors, directors, designers and technicians from New York City, Syracuse Stage, and other local colleges.
The club specializes in the unexpected and exciting shows which gives student actors and technicians a chance to stretch their skills. Boot and Buskin has offered the community many unusual pieces in recent years – including Brecht’s “The Exception and the Rule,” the 17th century blockbuster “The Knight of the Burning Pestle,” and the 18th century romp “Tom Jones” – as well as the classical and contemporary pieces such as “The Glass Menagerie” and Jane Martin’s “Talking With…” –all of which have received great critical acclaim in Syracuse.
This season continues with Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” and a new play to be announced.
Boot and Buskin can help build the basis for a future of the theater while students get the benefit of a liberal arts education, or it can merely provide an outlet for the release of creativity.
One of the goals this semester is to provide the students with an opportunity to have a backstage look at the technical aspect of a production. Those students not interested in the workings of a production are encouraged to experience a relaxing and entertaining night at the theater.