Student-produced performance free on Valentine’s Day
Senior composition major Nick Mitchell confident about his upcoming collaborative musical theater production.
“If they don’t laugh at least once, they can slap me in the face,” Mitchell said.
Amelia C. Warden | Rawr
Jesse Hampsch (left), Karen Hunt (center) and Alex Carey (right) rehearse for “Star Quest” directed by
Sam Williamson. “Star Quest” is free for all and will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 13 and 14.
Mitchell and fellow composition major at the Lionel Hampton School of Music, senior Jesse Hampsch, worked to produce the play, “Star Quest,” showing this weekend in the Administration Building auditorium.
The play was originally Hampsch’s idea. He said a friend of his who illustrates comic books came to him with a story idea for a coffee shop musical. At first, Hampsch said he thought the story was weird, but he began subconsciously thinking of songs for it, regardless. He decided if he were to write it, it would have to be a stage production. When Hampsch transferred from North Idaho College to the University of Idaho, he said he wanted to collaborate with other students. In line with this wish, he asked Mitchell to orchestrate the production.
“I had no idea what I was getting into,” Mitchell said.
[box style=”rounded” border=”full”]
More info:
“Star Quest” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 13-14, in the Administration Building Auditorium. The show is free for everyone, student or community member.
[/box]
Hampsch said “Star Quest” is about two explorers, a captain and science officer, on a mission to save Earth, which is running out of resources. They need to find another planet with the technology to save Earth. The pair ends up crash-landing on a planet where one woman is the sole inhabitant. There, they are shown many marvelous sights, but everything is not as it seems.
“In short, it’s a sci-fi comedy,” Mitchell said.
Hampsch corrected Mitchell, saying the play is a sci-fi farce. Since it is a musical theater production, Mitchell compared the play to “Cats,” but Hampsch was quick to disagree.
“Oh my gosh, no. It’s not like ‘Cats,'” Hampsch said. “If it’s anything like ‘Cats,’ I’m dropping out of school.”
The play combines musical theater with classical influences, reflecting both Hampsch and Mitchell’s experience in classical music. Hampsch said he and Mitchell are also collaborating with UI students from the theater department for costumes and lights.
Mitchell said he had never really watched a musical theater production from start to finish before Hampsch asked him to help produce “Star Quest.” With his classical roots, Mitchell brought ideas to the table, and the two learned to write off of each other.
Amelia C. Warden | Rawr
Alex Carey (left, Jesse Hampsch (center), and Karen Hunt (left) rehearse for Starquest on Monday night in the Administration Auditorium at the University of Idaho. Starquest is a play directed by Sam Williamson (front).
All of the aspects of a theater production create strain, which Hampsch said was the hardest part of the production for him. He also listed keeping people to their deadlines and meeting his own deadlines as challenges to the production. Hampsch has written musicals before, but none of his previous works had been staged like this one. There were many sleepless nights working on the production, he said.
“It’s insane how much individual work goes into it and how much of your life you invest into a product that may be awful,” Hampsch said. “There’s a lot of risk.”
If the elements don’t come together with a lot of chemistry, it could be a bad production. Hampsch said it was difficult to put so much time and heart into something while he was uncertain of its reception.
“I don’t know how we did it,” Mitchell said. “I blacked out the last five months. So it’s like ‘Oh, wow. We have this nice thing now.'”
Mitchell said the worst part of the production was Hampsch’s puns.
“Not the musical theater puns, those are top notch,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell continued to say the puns, against Hampsch’s intentions, often took a bad turn.
“But that’s the point, he’s so good at puns,” Mitchell said.
“It works on levels that I don’t even want them to,” Hampsch said.
A few of Hampsch’s puns, which started off mostly as ad lib, made it into the show, Mitchell said.
“It’s gonna be the funniest thing you’ve ever seen in your life,” Mitchell said. “We’re about to take the world by storm. Everyone’s going to know our names in five years, and they could say they saw it here. And it’s free, so there really is no reason not to come.”
Hampsch said anyone interested in theater, music or something weird that doesn’t happen at UI very often should come out and see it.
Claire Whitley can be reached at [email protected]