Stripping a show down, staying simple, getting at the core yet remaining true to the author’s intent.
That’s what Caitlin Graci Tran, artistic director and founder of Bare Bones Theatre Ensemble, likes about her latest collaboration of eight entertainers whose motto is “Theater that makes you think.” It may also well be “Have stage. Will travel.” And travel they will, to audiences that are lucky enough to discover Bare Bones’ unique theatrical perspective.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Tran muses. “I love going to see big spectacle shows, but, when I’m directing, I like to make my actors really act instead of relying on all the flash around them.”
Take away the stage lights, sets, costumes and glitter, she insists, and what you have is the ability to get into the characters you are watching and feel their emotions—up close and personal.
“We want to present material that makes our audiences sit back and ponder what they have just experienced,” Tran says.
Tran foresees edgier shows geared to the 20-to-40 age group. These include last year’s “The Rocky Picture Horror Show,” produced by Bare Bones at HMAC’s Stage on Herr in Midtown Harrisburg, and a rock music revue performed downtown at Ceoltas Irish Pub this past summer.
Next is a show planned on Dec. 8 at the Appalachian Brewing Co. in Harrisburg, and Tran and Bare Bones’ music director, Sally Bowman Keaveney, are in the process of expanding the rock revue. Tran plans to present the work of Bare Bones inside bars, clubs, colleges and traditional theaters and promises big things on the horizon in 2014.
A midstate native who now lives in Mechanicsburg, Tran recalls being 5 years old and seeing Central Pennsylvania’s Youth Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” at The Hershey Theatre. Instead of falling asleep as young children tend to do, Tran was mesmerized by it all and screamed out when the toy soldiers tried to kill the mouse king.
She was inspired enough to take ballet classes for many years, learning discipline and dedication. By middle school, her focus shifted from ballet to musical theater. Tran performed in school musicals and at Theatre Harrisburg and, at age 19, left college and moved to New York.
“I loved my time in New York, though it was far from easy,” she recalls. “After living in the Big Apple for several years, I came to realize that my true love was for directing.”
She got in touch with Thomas Hostetter, then Theatre Harrisburg’s artistic director, and he gave the go-ahead for Tran to produce and direct a revue and two full productions at the Hurlock Street space.
“I am very grateful for the doors that Tom opened for me,” Tran says. “Since then, I have worked with several other local theaters, and now I couldn’t be happier with this awesome group of friends in Bare Bones.”
Those friends include Becky Mease, Jason Whetstone, Tony Barber, Joseph Chubb, Vince Fazzolari and Joey Bartemus, and each will get to try their hand on different aspects of theater—from directing and choreography to producing and marketing. Tran wants Bare Bones to not only provide entertainment but also to be a learning experience for its members.
“We are a young group, ranging in age from early 20s to late 30s, and we want to give everyone a shot at taking the reins in some of these different aspects,” Tran says. “I feel very lucky to be working with each of my fellow ensemble members. We like to laugh and say that, individually, we are a bunch of divas on stage. But, when we are working together, we are all really looking out for the good of the group. It’s pretty awesome.”
To discover what Bare Bones is up to, visit their Facebook page: Bare Bones Theatre Ensemble.
