It may not be the most glamorous role in Bluffton University's production of "The Glass Menagerie," but Aaron Yost's part in the play aids both the actors and audience.
Yost, a senior from Pinetop, Ariz., is the production's dramaturg, researching "cultural references, historical events and even unfamiliar phrases in the script" of Tennessee Williams' classic drama, explains Dr. Melissa Friesen, the play's director. He has related his findings to the four student actors during rehearsals and will do likewise to playgoers in a program note and, possibly, a display outside Ramseyer Auditorium of items mentioned in the play.
Bluffton will stage "The Glass Menagerie" in the College Hall auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4-6 and at 2:30 p.m. Nov. 7. Tickets, $7.50 for adults and $5.50 for senior citizens (65 and over) and non-Bluffton students, are available online at http://tickets.bluffton.edu or by contacting the box office at 419-358-3239 or [email protected].
"Informing the actors is the first priority" of the dramaturg, says Yost, who is majoring in communication with a theatre concentration. "Giving the audience some context is the second priority."
Although the position can be beneficial to any play, "it's a lot more helpful if the play is new or a period piece, or has a lot of historical references," he adds. Written in 1944 and set in the 1930s, "The Glass Menagerie" meets the latter two criteria.
Among the subjects of Yost's research was a song, "The World is Waiting for the Sunrise," mentioned by the play's narrator, Tom Wingfield, in one of his monologues. It was a hopeful, upbeat ballad written soon after World War I, but young people in the late '30s dancehalls of "The Glass Menagerie" were listening to it unaware of Nazi aggression in Europe and the approach of World War II, Yost explains. Presenting that irony to Jared Hudson, who portrays Tom, was part of his job.
His work also revealed that when Amanda, the mother in the play, talks about jonquils, she's using a Southern colloquial term for flowers also known as narcissus, in the amaryllis family. It's an indication that while her family has moved to Missouri, "the Southern culture is still impacting her life," Yost notes.
But the research also involved some "frustrating dead ends," he points out. For example, he says, he couldn't find the origin or meaning of the question, "Where was Moses when the lights went out?" asked by Amanda during a power failure.
In addition to sharing his research findings with the cast, Yost "participates in discussions about the script-its themes, structure and character development," says Friesen, also an associate professor and chair of both the communication and theatre department and the communication and fine arts division at the university.
His first experience with dramaturgy was as an assistant on "Whatever Kindles," the 2008 fall play at Bluffton. His interest in the role was further kindled the following spring, when he attended a workshop on the subject at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville, Ky.
"His interest in dramatic structure and the craft of playmaking, in addition to his strong research skills," led him to dramaturgy, Friesen says.
Yost has been drawn to theatre from a young age. He was "very lucky growing up," he says, to have parents who enjoyed theatre, musical and otherwise, and took him to a number of shows, including on Broadway. Then, as a high school junior, "I made the all-state show choir and was around other people who were interested in theatre and music." He performed in musicals as a junior and senior and has continued that involvement at Bluffton, where his parents, three grandparents and a great-grandmother came to college before him.
"He has taken advantage of every opportunity to participate in theatre while at Bluffton, from acting in leading roles in plays and musicals to academic coursework to his dramaturgical work," adds Friesen, calling Yost "a gifted scholar with a passion for theatre."
That passion has also helped lead him to two internships. He spent 10 weeks in the summer of 2009 with Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre. The following fall, as part of Bluffton's semester-long program at the Washington, D.C., Community Scholars' Center, he worked in development, fundraising and donor support with the city's Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company.
Back in Washington last summer, he was introduced to another company's artistic director, who gave Yost his first paid theatrical position, as a short-term member of a technical crew. He has maintained those contacts, he notes, saying he has learned about the importance of connections and networking in the business.
Looking beyond graduation next May, "I'm interested in working in theatre in some capacity," Yost says. He's leaning toward literary management, which entails soliciting and reading scripts for a company to consider producing, as well as securing production rights. But for now, he adds, his "main focus" is on moving to a city that will offer any theatrical opportunities.
