Traveling Players Ensemble

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Traveling Players Ensemble, or TPE, is a non-profit professional theatre organization dedicated to bringing great theatre into the great outdoors through its thriving educational program. The educational program’s main feature is a summer camp with two four-week Middle School Ensembles, one four-week High School Ensemble, and the seven-week Traveling Troupe. The program also includes classes focused on acting techniques and Amphitheatre Overnights for scouts with an interest in acting. It started in cooperation with Calleva Outdoor Adventures, later moving to Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, Virginia, and now in residence at The Madeira School in McLean, Virginia.

Mission & History

Traveling Players Ensemble was founded in October 2003 by Jeanne E. Harrison, now the Producing Artistic Director of TPE. Their first play was John Pielmeier's "Haunted Lives" as part of a Halloween festival that includes "Markoff's Haunted Forest," The festival has been a family favorite for the past 13 years. Jeanne's mission was based on three beliefs:

·An appreciation of nature. TPE strives to link theatrical work to nature by rehearsing and performing outdoors and by producing plays in which nature is a dominant theme;

·An ensemble is an ideal structure in which to foster creativity and a sense of community. TPE's educational programs work intensively with small ensembles, thereby ensuring personalized attention and significant growth as an artist;

·Artistic creation is fundamental to forming one's identity, especially for teens in their unique and complex transition between childhood and adulthood.

TPE’s summer camp is also a reconstruction of the traveling players and acting troupes of the Middle Ages, who traveled on large wagons pulled by horses or oxen and usually performed popular plays in town centers for anybody who happened to be watching. Traveling Players Ensemble is an adaptation of this idea, moving in their trademark purple buses with collapsible sets and camping gear, ready to perform for other summer camps and schools.

Camp Structure

Traveling Players Camp accepts budding young actors and actresses in grades 6-12. They are split into three possible groups. Note that rising 9th graders have the choice of attending either Middle School Ensemble or High School Ensemble. They may also do both consecutively.There are 2 Middle School sessions running simultaneously, then 2 more immediately after. High School has 2 sessions, one following the other. There is only one Traveling Troupe per summer.
See this page for detail as provided by the camp: [http://travelingplayers.org/camp.htm Traveling Players Ensemble camp]

Middle School Ensemble

The Middle School Ensemble is for students rising into grades 6 through 9 and lasts four weeks. They perform at local summer camps, schools, and libraries in the last three days of camp.The two Middle School Ensembles rehearse plays by the French playwright Molière or the Italian playwright Carlo Gozzi. Their plays are deeply rooted in the traditions of Commedia dell'Arte.For the summer of 2008, the Middle School Ensembles will perform Molière's "The Doctor in Spite of Himself" ("Le Médecin malgré lui") and Gozzi's "Blue Monster".

High School Ensemble

High School Ensembe is for students in 9th through 12th grade. They follows a schedule similar to that of Middle School, rehearsing for three weeks and performing the fourth week at Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park, and finally back at the Madeira School.HSE performs works by Shakespeare. In the summer of 2007, they performed "Twelfth Night".For the summer of 2008, they will perform "As You Like It".

Traveling Troupe

The Traveling Troupe, is a by audition only and more rigorous ensemble for students rising into grades 10 through 12. It is 7 weeks long, rehearsing for 5 weeks, then embarking on a 12 day performing tour to the Shenandoah National Park, Canaan Valley Resort, Colonial Williamsburg, and finally back at the Madeira School, stopping on the way to see a play and go white-water rafting.Traveling Troupe also performs Shakespeare. In 2007 they did "The Taming of the Shrew", and in 2008 they will perform "The Winter's Tale".

Technical Theatre

Technical theatre positions are offered to 2 students for each High School Ensemble session and 2 for Traveling Troupe. They help make costumes and props, build sets, run lights and sound, and assist the stage manager.

Additional Performances

After the summer is over, the various ensembles can be called back to perform elsewhere as a result of auditions earlier in the year. High School Ensemble performed "Much Ado about Nothing" at The Kennedy Center in August 2005, and the Middle School Ensemble performed "The Love for Three Oranges" at the International Children’s Festival at Wolf Trap in September 2007, among other performances.

External links

Traveling Players Ensemble Website - [http://www.travelingplayers.org/]

Calleva Outdoor Adventures - [http://www.calleva.org/]

Meadowlark Gardens - [http://www.nvrpa.org/meadowlark.html]

The Kennedy Center - [http://www.kennedy-center.org/]

International Children’s Festival (Wolf Trap) - [http://www.artsfairfax.org/festival/index.shtml]

Reston Multicultural Festival - [http://www.restoncommunitycenter.com/multiculturalhome.html]

The Madeira School - [http://www.madeira.org/]

Traveling Players performs at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage - [http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium/artist_detail.cfm?artist_id=TRAVPLAYEN]