Theater
Taylor got hooked by drama, dance and music performance in high school when he was involved in Journey East, The Leland & Gray Players, an acapella group, and concert band as a flutist. While at Simon's Rock, he thoroughly enjoyed performing in every dance concert and in a number of theater productions. In 2012, he "studied away" for the spring semester at National Theater Institute (NTI), located on the coast of Connecticut at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. This entire semester was a "theater intensive" which included: acting, playwrighting, voice and speech classes, dance instruction, general stage movement and even stage combat!
Jim & Jane Henson Rehearsal Hall
and the
Lin-Manuel Miranda Studio
Above right: The Farmhouse is the dormitory for the NTI students; Taylor moved in, along with his classmates, in January 2012.
Left: a cute directional sign to the various buildings at The O'Neill, with the Long Island Sound in the background.
Right: Taylor's classmates contributed to this memorial brick, installed on the patio of Blue Gene's Pub.
Above: a group shot in St. Petersburg
Above left, top: Taylor giving Beth a big hug right before their final performance, on the last night of their NTI semester
Above left, bottom: Taylor & Julian on their tour bus in St. Petersburg
The entire class in costume for their final project:
The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov
NTI traveled to Russia for two weeks at the end of March. The intensity continued, now with instructors from the St. Petersburg Theater Arts Academy. The class did get to do a bit of sightseeing while there, though; they got to dance, in very "fancy" booties, in the ballroom of Catherine's Palace. Taylor complained to me (& he generally did little of that) about the absolutely terrible food, one example of which was something he described as: seriously soggy spaghetti with ketchup! And I seem to recall him saying that it was served for multiple breakfasts!
Taylor the foundation
Taylor and Jordan performing their stage combat scene
Taylor and Tracey
in St. Petersburg
A scene from 'The Cherry Orchard'
After a prompt to 'create a ship'
Beth calls this a very 'Theater School' picture! She describes this as the whole group in their Russian movement class "making a tableau using their bodies." She recalls Taylor absolutely loving that class and always wanting to try the most challenging moves, of course!
Taylor, Georgi, Jeremy, & Beth at lunch in Russia. Beth says it was a particularly fun meal, where they were all cracking each other up the entire time!
Right: Taylor & Shalee goofing around with a statue in St. P
Julian & Taylor hamming it up in their matching outfits!
Jazzmin fussing over Taylor's famous coat...
Beth & Taylor dancing in their special booties!
Apres Greek Chorus Workshop
Taylor having a ball with friends!
March in Russia was bitterly cold!
The cast of Post Grad, a musical Beth wrote
Above: Taylor and Shalee
Left: Taylor taking a seat on Mike Poe, one of the Advanced Playwrights
Above: This gold lion in St. P is said to be lucky, so the group took turns whispering a wish to it & rubbing it for good luck
Julian & Taylor
with imposing lion in St. P
Rebecca & Taylor getting a kick out of something before their final NTI performance
