Muhlenberg College was scheduled to present its first fall theatre dept production, Doctor Faustus, on Oct 1-4. Students have been on campus in rehearsals since August, after moving in early to start rehearsals with an intensive week prior to regular move in. The production was cancelled this past Thursday via a theatre dept-wide email announcing the cancellation. Cast and crew were not notified prior to the email being sent and were taken by surprise by the news. To date no one has met with the cast or production staff as a whole to explain why the show was cancelled right as tech week was starting. This has been devastating to the cast and crew of students involved in the production.
I’ve been on these boards for years talking up Muhlenberg’s programs so felt some responsibility to speak out on this so potential students are aware. I know there is a theatre and dance showcase coming up on 10/24 where prospective students may be on campus auditioning and they may want to ask about how show cancellations are handled.
I have a hs senior who wants to continue with theatre and dance in college and currently has this school on his Common App list. We will be seriously rethinking that now.
Both of my kids had shows cancelled last minute for COVID. Even then, when we all knew and understood why, the adults involved took the time to let the cast know before announcing the cancellation and provided specific details on steps they had taken to try to avoid cancelling.
The lack of any consideration from the Muhlenberg theatre dept to the student actors and crew involved is just astounding to me.
Do you have a student there now ? Just curious how you got such detailed info as to what’s not taken place communication wise.
It’s not a good situation as you describe. I hope it is rectified and these kids get the opportunity they are promised.
And the school will have a Pr Issue and schools like Muhlenberg can’t afford that - you are sample of one bit if they lose yours, then how many do they lose ?
Thx for posting. I hope you can provide updates as they come in.
I do have a student there now and she is/was involved in this production. She’s the reason why I have posted so much about Muhlenberg for the past few years - singing the praises of the theatre and dance programs
I’ve heard a lot more about it of course but tried to stick with the facts as I don’t want to pass along things heard second- and third-hand. The production was cancelled. There was no prior notification to cast that this was happening. They have been in rehearsals since August. Their tech week was scheduled to start this week. No one has met with the full cast/crew to explain why this happened.
Unfortunately tickets have already been refunded and I’ve heard from my kid that they are already taking the set down.
The production as conceived included aerial work that requires specific equipment. (This work was overseen by faculty and was not related to the cancellation as far as we know)
This is heartbreaking for the students who have already done so much work. I have to wonder if a funding source backed out and they couldn’t fund this production.
I do think a sit down with the cast and crew should have happened…not a surprise email.
There was only one time in all of my theater experiences that a show was almost cancelled. The director had taken some “liberties” with the script, and someone reported it to the folks who held the royalties and had given them to this group. They were told they had two options…change to the exact script…or cancel the show. Our director chose to change the script back to what it was supposed to be…HE didn’t have to memorize a bunch of new lines and blocking in just a few days…the rest of us did!
I hope the students in this cancelled production are given some preference in future productions at the college this year. They have worked hard…
It’s definitely a horrible situation, and the cast and crew of this show deserved more courtesy than it seems they were given. I hope there is a good explanation.
Terrible communication and I can’t even imagine what those students feel being so close to the show.
Even if they end up with a somewhat sane excuse why, I’ll be surprised if there wasn’t poor planning somewhere that could have prevented this altogether
I’m so sorry to hear about the show. This is the first I have heard this news, although Muhlenberg has well documented financial challenges. Their enrollment has consistently declined in the past decade, they are facing a $10 million deficit, and they cut 20 positions so far - including faculty positions. As a parent you’re probably aware of most of this already. I feel terrible for the kids who had the show pulled out from underneath them - just awful!
Yes, unfortunately we are familiar with these issues. A few big names in the theatre and dance faculty were included in the faculty reductions - some were given a one year contract for this academic year so will be leaving at the end of this year.
It’s been disheartening. And makes this cancellation decision so much more confusing. While the students have not been told directly why the decision was made to cancel they of course have an idea, and it isn’t funding or the type of liability issues mentioned above or a sudden emergency with faculty or staff this week. It seems to be the result of some internal strife and/or inability for faculty/the department to manage conflict or work through issues with some cast or crew members or among themselves. And for a program that is already struggling it seems short-sighted not to have tried to work through that a bit more.
They’ve spent quite a bit of money preparing for this show - they hired a designer, the costumes are all done and ready, they built the sets, etc. and now they’ve had to refund every dollar of ticket sales, not to mention the bad PR. It just doesn’t make sense.
The cast has found immense support from the various student organizations on campus and they are performing the play on the original show dates as an entirely student-run production. They have to use a non- dept location and have to re-source costuming and re-do blocking because they are not allowed to use any elements created or envisioned by the department.
Kudos to the students for making sure the “show will go on!”
Did students ever learn more than this?:
"The email stated that department leadership, production staff and college administration made the decision due to “challenges beyond anyone’s control” that were “exacerbated by a tight production schedule.”
I imagine this decision and lack of transparency will (appropriately) have a negative impact on the department’s future productions for some time.
Glad the students will get to put on their show i(n some form). Kudos to the students involved in in the production and the greater Muhlenberg community.
