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RIDE THE CYCLONE

A Music Senior Thesis (MUS 4990)

In Music Theatre

By

Ashley Veltman

Thesis Advisor: Lorian Schwaber

Thesis Committee: Maggie Spanuello and Corinne Ness

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PROPOSAL/APPROVAL BALLOT
*Below is my proposal. My thesis committee approved it over email. We did not want to pass
around a paper to be signed because of COVID-19.

PROPOSAL - Music Senior Thesis

Date: 14 May 2020
Name of Senior: Ashley Veltman
Thesis Type: Performance of a Dramatic Role

Title of Thesis: Ride the Cyclone

Collaborating Performers: Christine Barreca, Tyler Meyer, Anna Brown, Massimo
Manfredini, Matthew Wrbanak, and Nathan Myers
Date/s: Fall semester but dates unknown. Performances would take place in November.
Location of presentation: VPAL
Abstract:
In dense professional language describe
1) the project and it’s detail
My name is Ashley Veltman, and as a capstone to my education in Music Theater at Carthage
College, I will be in the cast of Ride the Cyclone. Ride the Cyclone is a workshop musical that
will be directed by Maggie Spanuello. The music, lyrics, and book are written by Jacob
Richmond and Brooke Maxwell. It appeared off-Broadway in 2016. The premise of the musical
is that there is a group of five high schoolers who die on a roller coaster called The Cyclone.
They meet Karnack, who is a fortune teller and the narrator. He tells the students that he will use
his last power before he dies to grant one them the gift of returning to life. Each of the students
try to prove through song why they should be the one to go back to earth and live their life, each
having a unique story. Jane Doe has had the hardest life and has no good memories to cling to.
Ocean is granted the deciding vote, and she decides to vote for Jane Doe to live so that she can
leave the world with better memories to hold on to, even if that means Ocean herself will die.
The rest of the teenagers travel to whatever the afterlife is.
2) the schedule of completion
This thesis will take place in the fall semester of 2020. I will take MUS 4990 this coming
semester. Casting will happen in May. Throughout the summer I can begin research, become
familiar with the script, do character analysis, and memorize my lines. In September rehearsals
would start. There would be rehearsal during workshop time, and also probably during the
evenings some days. The musical would go up some time in November, and the thesis would be
due at the end of the semester.
3) rationale for this project to capstone your study as a Music Major.
In my time at Carthage, I have accumulated many skills in acting, singing, and dancing. I
have spent countless hours training and practicing. Taking on a role in a musical will allow me to
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work on and display all of these skills in one place. It will also give me the opportunity to do
research and academic work surrounding my role in things like analysis and script scoring. When
I graduate, I intend to go out and audition. Performing is something I want to do as a career.
Therefore, this is an opportunity to dig into a role and perform like I will be doing after college.
It would showcase that I have gained the skills I need to successfully bring a character to life,
and that I also have the knowledge to back up the choices I make as an actor. I will also gain
valuable feedback on my performance from my thesis advisors and therefore have a clearer
understanding of the steps I still need to take to grow even further. I came into college with a
more legit vocal training, and I have been working in my vocal lessons to find the right
contemporary mix. With this contemporary musical, it would give me the opportunity to
illustrate the progress I have made through my lessons. I also have found that the typical role I
have been typed in at college is a younger, comedic character. This musical is about high
schoolers and, from what I have seen on youtube, it looks like a comedy. Therefore, performing
in this role will hit on those strengths I have been cast in. I am looking forward to digging into
this project and reading the script so I have a better understanding of what it will look like.
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ABSTRACT

My name is Ashley Veltman, and as a capstone to my Music Theater education at Carthage

College, I will be playing the role of Constance Blackwood in the fall music theater workshop

production of Ride the Cyclone, by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell, directed by

Magdalene Spanuello. This musical is about a group of high school choir students who find

themselves in a place of purgatory after dying in a roller coaster accident. One of them will be

brought back to life, and they all have the opportunity to state their case to why they should be

the one who receives a second chance. Throughout their journeys in this musical, they discover

how their lives had meaning and how the memories they have made are better than no memories

at all. Even if they did not accomplish what they meant to in life, they realize their lives still had

meaning and purpose. This musical was meant to tell the story of mass tragedy in an

approachable way that highlights the beautiful qualities of individuals lost instead of the horrific

event.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I want to thank Maggie Spanuello for her brilliant vision in direction of this musical as well as

her ability to figure out the best way to put together this production in the time of COVID, to

Melissa Cardamone for always being such a light in rehearsals and giving us the gift of her

incredible talent, to M-Jay He for challenging me to become a better dancer, to Lorian Schwaber

for not just helping me grow so much as a singer and artist, but also for giving me confidence in

my talents, and to the cast for being so supportive of each other thought this process. I would

also like to thank my parents for always supporting me in everything I do.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PROPOSAL/APPROVAL BALLOT…………………………………………………………. 2

ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………………. 4

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………………………………………...4

TABLE OF CONTENTS……………………………………………………………………….5

OVERVIEW OF THE DRAMATIC WORK………………………………………………....6

SYNOPSIS OF

MUSICAL…………………………………………………………………………………………….6

CREATORS………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…

SOCIAL

CONTEXT………………………………………………………………………………………………..….8

RESEARCH, PREPARATION, AND REHEARSAL PROCESS…………………………...10

CHARACTER

ANALYSIS……………………………………………………………………………………………11

CHARACTER

RELATIONSHIPS…………………………………………………………………………………...13

INSPIRATION FROM

VIDEOS…………………………………………………………………………………..…15

VOCAL

GOALS…………………………………………………………………………………………………….…15

REHEARSAL

TIMELINE……………………………………………………………………………………………16

PROPS……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….....

18
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JOURNALS………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…..

19

OTHER ARTIFACTS……………………………………………………………………....…27

SELF REFLECTION ESSAY……………………………………………………………..….29

WORKS CITED…………………………………………………………………………….....31

OVERVIEW OF DRAMATIC WORK

Ride the Cyclone begins with Karnak, a fortune telling machine and the narrator of our

story, introducing the students of the Saint Cassian Chamber Choir. After dying in a roller

coaster accident, they find themselves in a state of purgatory in which Karnak lives. He explains

that one of them will win a chance to return to life. Then Karank reveals the mystery contestant,

Jane Doe, a girl who lost her head in the accident and does not remember who she is. Ocean, the

most ambitious of the bunch, is determined to win the prize of life and put everyone else down to

illustrate she is the only real contestant. Then Karnak reveals that the winner will be chosen by a

unanimous vote from the choir, and Ocean tries to dig herself out of the hole she has just dug

herself into. Fed up with Ocean, Noel cuts her off to tell his story: being the only gay person in

his high school. He always loved drama and all things nihilistic, and sings of being a woman in

France selling herself to feel something. Inspired by Noel’s passion, Mischa then tells his story

about how his life is just a mix of rage and passion and raps in auto tune to cope. Then Ricky,

who has a newfound ability to speak, sings about his fantasy of being a sex god on a cat planet.
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Everyone is on a high after Noel’s song, until Jane sings about being separated from her soul and

longing to know who she is. To try and lighten the mood, the other kids throw Jane a surprise

birthday party, during which Ocean insults Constance. Constance is finally fed up and gets back

at her. Constance, who has always been seen as the nicest girl in town, now shows her other side.

She reveals how she used to hate Uranium, but in dying realized that it is the place where every

good thing happened to her.. Her song is a celebration of the life she got to live. Then it is time

for the vote. Ocean receives the final vote, and decides she cannot vote for herself. Everyone

agrees Jane should get to go back to life to remember who she is. She walks in the tunnel back to

life, Karnak dies, and the others wait together for what is next.

The playwrights/composers of Ride the Cyclone are Jacob Richmond and Brooke

Maxwell. Jacob Richmond started a cabaret company called Atomic Vaudeville. Brooke

Maxwell started to write musical sketches that were put in Jacob’s cabaret. They began working

on these musical venuetts together, and this production came from this style. This is the reason

why each character has a song in a unique style. Constance’s monologue was actually the first

piece they wrote for this musical. The first production of Ride the Cyclone was performed in

Victoria, British Columbia in 2008. In 2011, it played at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto. Then

it toured different theaters in Canada in 2013. Rachel Rockwell joined the team to bring Ride the

Cyclone to Chicago at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. There were many changes made to the

production when she became the director (“Works and Process”). From there, the production

moved to New York Off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in 2016 (Zimmermann). It won

many awards including SummerWorks Award, Toronto Theater Critics Award, Dora Mavor

Moore Award, Saskatoon and Area Theatre Awards, The Joe A. Callaway Award , and The Suzi

Bass Award, and was nominated for others. Ride the Cyclone was also produced in Seattle in
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2018, and in Atlanta and Minneapolis in 2019. Constance was first played by Kelly Hudson in

both the Toronto production and Canadian Tour. When the musical came to Chicago, Lillian

Castillo took over the role and played her all the way until the production in Minneapolis where

Gabrillo Dominique took over the role (“Ride the Cyclone”).

Jacob Richmond is from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and he received his education from

Concordia University. He double majored in History and Performance. Richmond made a career

for himself as a playwright. Some of his plays include Small Returns, Legoland, From Canada to

Canada, and The Qualities of Zero, which won the Montreal MECCA award for Best Text.

He founded Atomic Vaudeville which is a non-profit society in which a variety of artists can

showcase their new works. He wrote cabaret pieces for this group (Jacob). This is how he met

Brooke Maxwell. Both of them are based in Victoria, British Columbia. Brooke Maxwell

received his education from Berklee College of Music where he studied jazz composition and

arranging (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre). He started off his career teaching and performing as a

musician on multiple instruments. Then he found Atomic Vaudeville led by Jacob Richmond and

started creating music for them. That is when their partnership began which led to Ride the

Cyclone. He still primarily works as a musician, mostly arranging works for choirs. In 2016, he

started the project Neighbourhood Hootenanny Time Machine in which he gathered musicians to

play together and invited people of all ages to come and dance along to the music. He started this

because he believes it is important for people to see instruments played by musicians live and not

just through a screen (Maxwell). In addition to all these achievements, he is also well known for

sound design and underscoring works (Broadway Licensing). Both Jacob Richmond and Brooke

Maxwell are currently working on another musical together titled The Island of Hope (Chicago

Shakespeare Theatre).
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While Ride the Cyclone is contemporary, it does not take place in a specific time frame. It

is in a state or purgatory that is removed from real life and time. While it might not be set in a

very specific time or moment in history, this musical does have an important social context that

is relevant today. In the interview Works & Process at the Guggenheim: MCC Theater’s Ride the

Cyclone, Jacob Richmond revealed his inspiration for writing this musical: to discuss mass

tragedy. He wanted to do so in a way that doesn’t make people another number in a statistic, but

makes them real and tells their story. He wanted to illustrate that we should look at their whole

person and their life as opposed to their tragic end when remembering them. While our

production is not a commentary on COVID, I think this theme is really important during this

pandemic. Our whole world is going through a time of mass tragedy. Everytime someone turns

on the news, there are new numbers added to the large and growing death toll. This musical can

remind the audience that these are real people with rich life stories, not just more numbers. This

production can hopefully also bring people healing who know someone who recently died.

Maybe they will be able to see how their legacy and story will live on. This musical also handles

these topics in a way that is not heavy. Therefore, the audience can laugh and enjoy themselves

while being healed at the same time. It recognises that even if life is not going the way we

planned it to be going (which it isn’t for anyone), we can still find significance and joy in it. It

helps us each to see why our own particular viewpoint and story are relevant, but also to

remember that others’ are too.

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RESEARCH, PREPARATION, AND REHEARSAL PROCESS

Ride the Cyclone was completed as a workshop musical directed by Maggie Spanuello,

choreographed by M-Jay He, and music directed by Melissa Cardamone. She also made the

piano tracks for the production. It was performed in the Visual and Performing Arts Lab (VPAL)

and recorded. It was recorded in 4 different segments and then pieced together to create a whole

production to live stream. This was because we could not have people in the audience due to

COVID-19. Dimitri Shapovalov was the sound technician for the video and Emily Carr was the

sound designer. Asmau Diallo was the videographer and video editor. There were no auditions

for these roles. Whoever wanted to be in a workshop signed up for the class, and then roles were

decided based on who signed up. Casting was sent out on May 21st, 2020.

A benefit of casting being sent out during the end of spring semester was that I had all

summer to work on preparation and research. Maggie Spanuello sent a pre-production research

packet to fill out. It was very extensive, and really helpful in being prepared to begin the

rehearsal process. For research, I watched videos and interviews about the musical and creative

team on youtube, read articles about the creators, and tried to research towns in Canada that
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would be similar to the fictional town of Uranium. I also made note of everything I felt and

understood after reading the musical for the first time, because this is similar to how the audience

will feel and understand it. Working on this musical was a unique opportunity because I had

never heard of it before it was announced. It was really interesting to read a musical for the first

time, never having seen it or listened to a soundtrack. I feel that it gave me freedom to explore

and discover the meanings of the musical and who my character is myself, instead of already

having an idea from seeing another production. The biggest portion of the pre-production

paperwork was character analysis. The first thing I did was go through the script and make a list

of my character’s facts and givens to give me a base level to start. Here they are:

1. She is in the choir and is an alto which comes with certain stereotypes
2. She is in a transition between life and death
3. She has always lived in Uranium
4. Her parents are still together
5. She has a little brother but it is unclear about how old he is
6. Her parents work at the Blackwood Cafe and her family descended from miners
7. She was a virgin until 3 hours before the accident and had sex with the carnie who was 32
which is literally illegal for him
8. The only award she has ever received was “nicest girl in homeroom” multiple times and
she always threw it out
9. She hates being known as the nice girl because there is more to her that people are
missing
10. She died in a roller coaster accident
11. She walked to and from school which means she does not have a car and her parents
either did not want to or could not drive her. Or she did not want them to
12. Ocean is her best friend. Maybe her only friend
13. She is a junior
14. She is not a straight A student
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Constance’s super objective is to prove to the others that she deserves to be the one to live so that

she can go back and appreciate her life. Her main obstacle to this objective is that everyone else

is fighting for the same thing. While they might be people she cares about, they are obstacles

because only one of them can be given back life. She doesn’t believe she is the best of the people

there and that she deserves it. People do not know the real her, and even her best friend is not

supporting her. In looking through the script for physical and vocal characteristics, there is

nothing specifically mentioned for Constance. However, her catchphrase is “Sorry…” and that

tells a lot about her. She would have more of a timid voice, apologizing with the way she talks.

This would contrast with Ocean’s more powerful and domineering voice. I also think that she

would try to make herself smaller physically because she is not confident in herself. I think these

choices would change throughout the show as she gains more confidence and starts to stand up

for herself. In looking at her social characteristics, Constance is probably lower class to

lower-middle class. She lives in a very small town, and her parents own a cafe. Therefore, they

could not make that much money. It seems it is not likely Constance would have the means to

move out of town and start a life/go to college. Her education level is that she is a junior in high

school. However, she does not seem to have a clear path of what she desires to do after college

(or what she would have wanted to do if she didn’t die). Constance’s psychological state tells a

lot about her. People have made Constance believe the things she loves and values are a joke.

This makes her also feel like she has become devalued by them because they made fun of her

identity. Ocean claims that Constance has “self-esteem issues”. Her catchphrase is her

apologizing, which would back that up. She acts the way she does to try and not cause conflict

and also to make people like her. She apologizes to place the blame on herself because she feels

like she is a problem and also so people do not have an excuse to be upset with her. She always
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laughs at guys jokes because she thinks they will hate her if she doesn't. She doesn’t feel like she

has power. In looking at Constance’s moral compass, she definitely has one but it is not as rigid

as other characters such as Ocean. She seems to like profanity and finds it funny. Her morals

conflict with Ocean’s. Ocean is very committed to what she sees as good morals, things like not

swearing and not drinking and doing drugs. However, Constance finds these things funny and

likes dirty jokes. She three hours ago lost her virginity and did not find it necessary to wait until

she was in a committed relationship. She lives in a small town and I’m guessing was raised on

the conservative side. While because of this she is ignorant about things, she is not conservative

herself. She has never known anyone in the LGBTQ community, but after seeing the two boys

dance, she seems pretty excited about it. I think she went to church sometimes with her parents

growing up, but does not really believe in it. She believes that something is out there after life,

but is not sure what it is. She is not worried about it though; she seems pretty at peace in the end

about going to whatever is next.

Character relationship chart:

Karnak What Karnak says about Constance: “Favorite ride: The Cyclone. The only honor
Constance Blackwood was to receive in her short lifetime was ‘nicest girl in
homeroom’. Three years in a row. An award she secretly threw in the dumpster
behind her local Kentucky Fried Chicken on her way home” the pages where people
wrote she was nice in the yearbook “were carefully removed with an exacto knife.
And burnt. Constance Blackwood, the nicest girl in town” pgs. 72-72

Karnak is the only person besides Jane that Constance does not know prior to the
start of this musical. He always has higher status than her because he has the power
to bring her back to life. He also knows everything about her, everything that she has
kept hidden from everyone else, which makes her uneasy.

Ocean Ocean says she has known everyone (minus Jane and Karnak) since preschool so
therefore everyone has known each other that long “I’ve known most of these folks
since Pre-K” pg. 15
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“Constance Blackwood, my best friend forever, my BFF- … Constance is the salt of

the earth… Our ‘Mary Main-Street’ looking for her ‘Joe Six-Pack’. Sure, she has
some serious self-esteem issues, but why wouldn’t she?” pg. 16
To Constance in “What the World needs” “Soccer mom, minivan, four little brats, no
steady man. Do we really need another organ donor?” pg 18
“You, you were satisfied doing nothing, making cupcakes...eating them. You are
what the Taoists call an ‘uncarved block’” Pg. 71

Ocean is Constance’s best friend. However, she is rude to Constance throughout the
musical. Ocean does not envision Constance accomplishing anything in her life. This
makes Ocean feel better about herself when she is around Constance because she has
a path and Constance doesn’t. However, they have been friends forever and have a
lot of fun memories from when life was not as complicated. Constance has not ever
confronted Ocean about being rude because she doesn't like conflict. I also think that
Ocean is more rude to Constance in the course of the show than she ever has been in
real life because she is so focused on winning the chance to return to life. Although
Ocean is rude to Constance at times, Constance still really values her friendship and
opinion. Without Ocean, Constance would not really have anyone. Therefore, she
has to keep Ocean happy.

Ricky What Ricky says about Constance: To Constance in yearbook “wow, you seemed so
nice…” pg. 72
Constance knew Ricky, but did not really have a previous relationship with him
because he was sick and could not talk. However, I think she always felt for him
because she understands what being an outsider feels like. She grows closer to Ricky
throughout the course of the musical and really enjoys getting to know who he really
is. She is becomes attracted to him when he starts talking about being a sex god on a
cat planet.

Noel What Noel says about Constance: To Constance in yearbook “I never really met you-
you seemed friendly” pg. 72

Noel and Constance have never been close friends. He really dislikes Ocean, and
because Constance and Ocean are best friends, that would explain why they have
never really hung out. I don’t think Constance even knew Noel was gay until he says
so in his monologue. She admires seeing him be his truest self, but I do not feel like
Constance and Noel become very close.

Jane Constance says that Jane really freaks her out. “I’m really freaked out right now!”
pg. 13
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At first, Jane petrifies Constance. At the same time, Constance is also enthralled by
her. Jane terrifies her, but there is something about Jane that makes her not able to
look away. Every time Jane tries to talk to her in the beginning, or stares at her, she
is very freaked out. However, as the story unfolds, Constance realizes she is just
another human who does not have any memories. She goes from fearing Jane to
having so much empathy and compassion towards her. She even helps throw her a
birthday party. When Ocean looks to Constance at the end of the play, sort of asking
her if Constance wants her to vote for her, she selflessly looks to Jane. She chooses
Jane to return to life over her.

Mischa Constance has never been close to Mischa. In the play, she does not say anything
about him and he does not say anything about her. I made up the story that
Constance has had a crush on him before their death, which is why she is so attracted
to him in his song. She thinks he is really cool and admires him. That is about the
extent of their relationship.

One unique aspect about Ride the Cyclone is there is not a recording or cast album

available to listen to and draw information from. I honestly liked this. It allowed me to make my

own choices. I did not have to worry about the audience expecting to see something specific out

of me because it is how they are used to hearing a song. There was a level of freedom I felt

because the audience probably will not know the show and therefore, I can make whatever

choices I want as long as they fit my interpretation of my character. One video I did draw some

inspiration from was Lillian Castillo doing Constance’s monologue and singing “Sugarcloud”

which is part of the Works & Process at the Guggenheim: Mcc Theater’s Ride the Cyclone. This

video was one of my first impressions of Constance, and it made me really excited to play her. I

watched this video before I had the script, and I fell in love with this monologue when I heard it.

I did not watch it much though because I wanted to make sure I did not remember specific things

she did. I wanted to find what my natural instincts were with this monologue. The only thing I

did not love about her version of this monologue was how much of a character voice she used,

which gave me the inspiration to make sure I was talking mostly in my normal voice. I did listen
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to her sing “Sugarcloud” quite a bit. This is how I first learned the song because I did not have

the sheet music yet and wanted to learn it. Lillian’s voice is really different than mine, and at first

this intimidated me. However, I just decided to be okay with that and know when I sing

“Sugarcloud” it will not sound the same as when she sings it, and that is okay. I do love the

energy and joy she brought into this song which inspired me to do the same and really go for it.

Going into this process, I definitely had vocal goals set for myself. One interesting thing

about this musical is that every song is a different genre. Therefore, all the background singing is

a different style. A goal I had was to really incorporate these styles into the way I sang the

background vocals while still fitting into the blend with everyone else. Constance’s song

“Sugarcloud” was my biggest challenge. The notes were not hard to hit, but the style is really

different from what I am used to singing. My biggest goal with this song was to just go for it

with full confidence because this song would not work if Constance did not fully believe in

herself. She is having a party by the end of the song, and is feeling the best she has ever felt,

which meant I could not be afraid of it or else I would not be able to act it. I learned when I let

go, it was not only more fun, but also sounded better. My other goal for this song was to really

figure out where to belt and where to mix and how to still make my mix sound strong when I

switched over. I wanted to make sure I didn’t belt too high and sound like I was yelling, but I

also knew that I did not want any part of this song to sound weak. My last vocal goal was to sing

everything how Constance would sing it. This is not a musical where pretty singing is the biggest

priority. I wanted to do Constance justice and bring her personality into everything. Therefore, I

did not want to just focus on having the right notes and dynamics. I wanted to bring her to life

with the vocal choices I made.

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September 14th, 2020 was the first day of rehearsals. We blocked the show and learned

the choreography and vocals as quickly as possible. During filming weeks, we would review

choreography and vocals on the Monday rehearsal during class time, run through the whole

section we were going to film that week on Wednesday during class time, tech the section

Wednesday evening, and film Friday during class time. It was a tight schedule. Sometimes it was

a little frustrating that we did not get more time to rehearse because I felt like I did not get to

play around with different character choices as much as I would have liked. I felt like I had to get

it “right” and less like I could try new things. However, I know we did not have a lot of time and

it made sense why we did it the way we did. We filmed the first segment on October 23rd and the

second segment on October 30th. We were supposed to film the third segment on November 6th

and the last segment on November 11th. Then the production was going to be streamed

November 20-22nd. However, Christine and I had to go into quarantine due to COVID-19, and

we had to push back these dates. We originally planned on coming back after break to rehearse

the third section January 11th and film the third section January 13th. Then we were going to

rehearse the fourth section January 17th and film the fourth section January 23rd. However,

COVID struck again, and Christine had to quarantine. We still rehearsed on the 11th without her,

but we had to wait until the 20th to record the third section. Then we rehearsed the last section

and recorded it on the 23rd. COVID struck one last time and two of our cast members, Anna

Brown who played Jane Doe and Tyler Meyer who played Noel, were not able to be there on our

last day of filming. Cailtin Preuss filled in for Anna. We had to change some vocal parts and

spacing for the dances, but overall it went smoothly considering everything. Asmau is currently

working on editing the videos, and the production will stream on Broadway HD February 5th

and 6th at 7:30pm and February 7th at 3:00pm.

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This rehearsal process was unlike anything I have ever experienced before. We learned

everything as quickly as possible and only really reviewed each section one more time before

having to film it. Part of the reason for this limited rehearsal time was that we would have less

exposure to each other for COVID. I wish we were able to have more rehearsals because it

would have given us more time to play. I was so focused on trying to do things right and taking

notes that I feel like I did not get as much opportunity as I wanted to try new choices. I do think

the show will come together well. I just feel like there was more we could have done with our

characters and making new discoveries if we had more time. I do feel like for the time we had,

we did the best we could

In addition to acting in Ride the Cyclone, I also was in charge of the props. This is

something I have never done before, but I was excited to try something new. I volunteered to

make the props list because I had just learned how to make a props list in my stage management

class. I went through the script and put every prop either listed in the stage directions or

mentioned in dialogue on my list. I also included page numbers and where I thought I could get

the prop. Then I met with Maggie and we talked through the list and decided which props were

necessary and which we did not need. Then I put together a list of props on amazon for Maggie

to order for the production. There were some props that cast members provided like cigarettes

and a lighter. The most important prop was Jane Doe’s doll. I found an antique doll on facebook

marketplace for really cheap, bought it, and cut off the head. It was a little creepy, but I think the

doll worked really well. There were also a couple of props I helped make. The chapel office let

me borrow some microphone stands, and Tianna let me borrow old mics that do not work

anymore. I got jewel stickers and jewel tape to bedazzle one of the mics for Mischa’s song. I

made sure the jewels stayed in place while still being able to take them off without damaging the
 Veltman 19

mic. I also put the lights on the umbrellas with the help of Christine. We originally tried super

gluing them, but they would not stick. Then I realized if I wrapped the lights tight enough, they

would stay on better than with the glue. I wish we had more lights on the umbrellas, but we had a

really small budget, so we had to work with what we had. One thing that was a challenge was

that all the props we usually have stored in the closet were not usable because everything had

molded. Therefore, I did not get to pull anything. However, we made it work. It was fun to have

that responsibility and to get to do something on the technical side for a change.

Props List:

Props: Page Number: Notes: Have:

Headless vintage doll X
Crutches that attach to arms X
Rat 1 Stuffed rat X
Head Lamps 3 For everyone X
Phone for Mischa 10 X
Paper of speech 15 Rips it so need multiple X
Cigarette holder 31 A la breakfast at tiffanys X
Lighter for cigarette 31 X
3 Folding fans 43 One for each of the girls X
Email M-Jay with picture
5 Umbrellas 62 One for each kid except Jane X
In stage directions, they umbrellas
light up with LEDs and look like
elements of a carnival?
Cupcake 68 Does not need to be real but need X
candle. Build it? Not cartoon
Candle for cupcake 68 X
Birthday hat 68 X
2 Vodka flasks 70 Pulled one and Maggie is bring one X
microphone stands 76 X From chapel office
Microphones 76 X From Tianna
Recorder 77 X
 Veltman 20

JOURNALS:

After each rehearsal, I wrote a short journal. This helped me keep a record of my progress and

remember what we worked on when. Below I have typed out all of those journal entries.

9/14/20

Today was our first rehearsal! My goal for today was to sight read well because it has been a

while. I actually sight read better than I thought I would! I was happy about that. We learned the

vocals for the first few songs, and honestly, I could have stayed there for like 3 more hours and

just kept learning because it has been so long and it was really filling my heart. I think we all

sounded really good together. I am excited that we are all on separate parts because it makes us

take ownership of our part and not rely on anyone else. It is a good challenge.

9/16/20

Goal: To not just sight ready but also bring my character into my singing and follow the

dynamics.

Today we finished all the ensemble numbers that are not in solo songs. I thought we would be

further along by now, but I’m sure it will be okay. If anything, we will just have to have an extra

music rehearsal. I do feel like I accomplished my goal for today. Honestly, in two of the songs

we worked on, I sing the same not for like half the songs so it was easy to focus on character and

dynamics. In “Minor Turn” there are some weird rhythms/tempo changes so I am going to have

to work on that on my own time. I found it mad eit even more fun to focus on how COnstance

would sing the songs because it brought the songs to life. I also worked on “Sugarcloud” in my

voice lesson today. I told Lorian I felt like I was not belting enough, but she told me she thought

I was belting at just the right parts, so that was reassuring. She helped me to find the right

speechy quality for the beginning. The hardest part for me is the riff, and she told me Kati is
 Veltman 21

planning on coming to a rehearsal to work with some actors who need to do accents so she might

be able to help me with those couple of bars when she is here.

9/18/20

Goal: Basically the same as yesterday, to not just learn the notes but also use dynamics and sing

the songs like my character would sing them.

Today we learned the ensemble part of “Sugarcould”, and I realized that while I know my

melody, it is harder for me to find the timing with the ensemble part. Therefore, I set up a

coaching with Melissa next week to work on it. Maggie told us today that we are going to film

the show in 20 minute segments and never do the whole show all the way through. It is

interesting, almost like we are filming a movie. One thing I think will be challenging about this

is making sure I follow my character arc throughout the whole show, even though we are

splitting it into parts. I feel like it is a lot easier to feel a character’s arc when you do runs, but I

will just really have to know where I left off in the last video and where I want to go from there.

9/21/20

Goal: To be really focused and accurate with my notes.

Today we finished learning all the music! That was really exciting. Today we learned Ricky’s

song which is the song I had not heard yet because I could not find a recording of it. I don’t even

know what to say. It is the strangest, most uncomfy, song. But it is funny. Now that we are done

learning all the music, I am making it my goal to have the songs memorized asap. Puffs tech is

also starting, which makes this harder. I am going to try my best to use my free time wisely so

that I have enough time to memorize and know the music by heart in a week or so. I would say

I’m about 70% there with my lines which is good.

9/23/20
 Veltman 22

Goal: Let loose and have fun with my character choices.

When I wrote my goal, I thought we were starting blocking today, but we ended up doing

housekeeping. We put up curtains, which helped a lot with the echoing. We also assigned crews,

and I am on props. I just finished making the props list. There are a lot of props in the stage

directions that I am unsure if they are necessary. I will have to talk to Maggie about those.

Before rehearsal, I did a coaching with Melissa on “Sugarcloud”. She helped me a lot.

She told me to be more speech-like in the beginning so my sound had the rock feel. She also told

me the whole song could use more twang. She helped me with the riff section by saying I should

sound like Christian Aguilera and that I can use any vowels I want. I feel way more comfortable

with the song after working with her.

9/25/20

Goal: To be authentic and not sound pre-programmed when doing the read through.

Today was our first read through (of half the show). In doing my goal, I was surprised by how

some of the lines came out of my mouth. They were different choices than I thought I would

make. Also, Melissa gave us time before the read to go over any vocals we wanted. I asked to go

over Ricky’s song because I know that one the least. I feel a lot better about it now.

9/28/20

Goal: To be a real and authentic person when I act and now get into my head.

Today we finished the read through. The second half of my show is where I have most of my

lines. I think it went well. It felt really good to do my monologue into my song because I usually

practice them separately but they felt so right together. I could more clearly see my journey

doing them together. I still do not feel completely confident on my song. I just need to keep

doing it and getting it in my body. After rehearsal, Matt and Nate told me they knew I was a
 Veltman 23

good actor, but they didn’t know I was that good. That gave me confidence in myself and made

my heart happy. I’m so excited to start working on our feet next rehearsal.

9/30/20

Goal: To pick up choreography quickly and accurately.

Today was our first choreography rehearsal! We learned “Uranium” and the first half of “Minor

Turn”. The choreography is not complicated, so it is all about being sharp and adding character

to it. M-Jay explained the context of the scenes well. In “Uranium”, it is our first chance to

perform as a choir so we are nervous and it looks very choreographed. He compared it to

children in a pageant. This choir competition was also a chance for the kids to get out of

“Uranium”, which is ironic because they are singing about how great it is while being excited

they have an opportunity to get out of the town. “Minor Turn” enters a dream sequence that

represents their death, and then switches to them on the rollercoaster which is where we ended.

10/2/20

Today we finished “Minor Turn” and began to block the first few pages after. In “Minor Turn”,

we did more rollercoaster choreography. We do this move where we pick up a chair and put it

over our heads and lean forward. This takes a lot of ab work. The steps at the ending I was

having trouble getting the timing of, but after watching the video I understand it. It is exciting to

have the first chunk of choreography done.

10/5/20

Today, we started blocking. Maggie was moving at a much faster pace than I am used to directors

moving, and it kept me on my toes. I need to come up with a sorry. Christine and I

“choreographed” our “unlock the power of the positive UPOP” moves. We also learned the steps

to Jane’s entrance which took a while to time out, but it is not hard.
 Veltman 24

10/7/20

Goal: Not to ask too many questions when learning choreography but to try to figure it out first.

Today we finished blocking up to “What the World Needs” and choreographed “What the World

Needs”. This is an interesting song for me because while everyone is annoyed at Ocean, I love

her and don’t even realize she is saying offensive things about us. I’m just jamming along. Both

the chourses have the same choreography which makes things easier. It is kind of a hip hop style

which is funny because we also did hip hop today in Movement for Singers. On Friday, we are

going to test film page. 14 to what we finished today. I need to review that section before we do

that.

10/9/20

Goal: To be focused and helpful and remember all my lines and blocking

Today the film and sound crew came for the first time to test film. It took them awhile to figure

out how the mics worked, so we just hung around and tried to not get in the way. Once

everything was working, we ran from page 14 through “What the World Needs”. It went really

well. We all remembered what we were doing. The only real problem was that our mics had a

pounding noise when we danced, but that is not my problem to fix. My biggest struggle is that it

is really hard to sing and dance with a mask on and not get out of breath. That is something I’m

going to have to work on.

10/10/20

Today was our first long rehearsal. We got everything we planned on doing done, which was

great. We finished “What the World Needs” and blocked all the way to Mischa’s song. We also

learned the choreography to “Fucked Up Girl”. That is a song I will have to practice because 1)
 Veltman 25

I’m not good at being sexy and 2) the part where we lay down on the chair is scary. I need to

become comfortable with it so it does not look like I am struggling.

10/12/20

Today we learned the choreography for “This Song is Awesome”. In my opinion, this is the

hardest piece we have learned so far. It is hip hop, which I struggle with. We learned the general

choreography first and then added it to certain parts of the song. Then we added transitions. It

really confused me to learn it out of order like this. We tried to run it at the end of rehearsal and

all just ended up freezing in the middle because we forgot what came next. I need to practice it a

lot before Wednesday because even the part I know what I’m doing I know I don’t actually look

good.

10/14/20

Today we choreographed almost all of “Space Age Bachelor Man”. It was nice because it is

backup singer choreography so it is pretty simple. Although, in a way that makes the moves

harder to remember because they are similar. In the dance break, we do harder choreography. I

was proud of myself because M-Jay did not have to correct me in this section which means I did

the hardest part correctly right away! The only note he gave us about this section is to be sharper

on the hits. After we learned that part, we had to leave but we are very close to finishing the

song.

10/16/20

Today we finished “Space Age Bachelor Man”. We spent a while reviewing and sharpening what

we learned yesterday. We changed a couple of things. We learned the bridge where we are cats

on the ground dancing. I watched the video after rehearsal, and I just need to practice the moves
 Veltman 26

flowing into the next move. I also need to vocally practice the last set of oohs because I am not

sure that I am singing them correctly.

10/17/20

We did a lot today. We blocked Jane Doe’s song, which felt like it took forever. We have

umbrellas and the movements are not hard. The difficult part is that we have to be very precise

and together for it to look correct. We blocked my section today. Maggie told me to start my

monologue very strong and not apologetic. She told me that everything I say is a discovery.

Constance had not planned on sharing anything except the very first part of the monologue about

the carnie. After trying my monologue with this in mind, it really did bring it to life more. I feel

like my monologue goes on forever, but I have to get comfortable with that. She also told me to

treat the images I see less like a list. M-Jay did not give me much choreography in my song.

People are mostly just dancing around me. I feel awkward because I am not used to being the

center of attention and I don’t know what to do. I’ll practice and come up with something. It was

hard to sing with the mask and movement, even though I’m not dancing that much. I feel like I

did not use as much twang as I should have. I also was belting too much. It’s okay, I have time to

incorporate the dancing and singing together.

10/18/20

We finished the show today! All we had left was some scenes and the last bit of songs that is

mostly just us standing and singing. We learned the part today where I throw the doll at Ocean.

We practiced this a lot to make sure I would not hurt her. I think it is cute how we end the show

like we are on the rollercoaster. I went over the vocals for the last two songs a lot before coming

to rehearsal, but I still feel the least confident about those songs vocally. That is something to

work on. I’m looking forward to beginning to film next week!

 Veltman 27

OTHER ARTIFACTS

This is the publicity photo for Ride the Cyclone. I uploaded it as my cover photo on facebook to

promote the production. It has the correct dates for when our production is going to stream.

Originally it was going to stream in November, so this change of dates is important. It illustrates

the students on the roller coaster The Cyclone on which they died. This image is important

because it bookends the show. We make this image of being on the roller coaster in one of the

first songs “Minor Turn” and we end on the same stage picture at the end of the musical.
 Veltman 28

This is a photo of us performing “Sugarcloud”. This is when we were recording it for the final

product. This song is my character’s biggest moment in the show. This picture also illustrates

what our costumes, set, and hair and makeup looks like. I enjoy this picture because I think it is

funny that I am faking playing the recorder through a mask. It is an illustration of silly things

COVID forced us to do.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gOyxZzgxiVNRx9LOFSeg201jr4XgnMkD/view?usp=sharing

This link is from the rehearsal on October 19th where we did our test filming. This is the first

time we wore mics and performed in front of cameras. This documents us in a rehearsal and what

it was like to add these aspects. It was strange to see the camera and know they are recording

you. It was something we all had to get used to.

 Veltman 29

SELF ASSESSMENT ESSAY

While this production during the time of COVID had some unconventional parts, I am

really proud of my work. This was my first time performing in front of a camera, and it did take

some getting used to. I’m glad I had this opportunity to experience what it is like to perform in

front of a camera before going into the real world and trying it. I think adaptability was crucial to

my project being a success. With everything from the show getting pushed back to the shorter

rehearsal period to adapting to the camera instead of performing in front of an audience, I was

forced to stay positive and go with the flow. I think this shows growth because I adapted to every

curve ball that came my way. I did not let it give me anxiety like I probably would have had it

been earlier in my college career. Another major struggle for me in this process was adapting to

singing and dancing with masks on. When I was practicing at home, I would always practice

with masks on to help build up my stamina. I still feel that there are some parts of the recording

when I was breathy just because it is really hard to not get out of breath when wearing masks, but

I do feel like I improved a lot at this from the beginning of the process. I am really proud of my

final performance. I believe I acted in a way that was funny and fit my character, but also was

authentic and meaningful. One part I wish I did a little better during the recording was the high

note I hold out at the end of my song because I know I can do it better than I did. Other than that,

I feel really good about it. I think I made progress in the way my body moves through the

choreography. M-Jay kept giving me notes about how I do the movements too big and try too

hard. I think I eventually found a good balance between doing the choreography full out but not

too extreme.

Throughout the course of this process, I really came to realize how important analytical

work is to developing an authentic character. Throughout my college career, I have learned how
 Veltman 30

to analyse a script and a character effectively. I always write out objectives and tactics in my

script, which help me know how to play the lines truthfully. However, I have never dug this deep

into analysis of a character and a musical, and now I realize the importance of doing so. In

researching towns in Canada, I got to see snippets of what everyday life might have been for my

character. In watching interviews of the creators, I got to see their vision of the show which

helped me know how to bring that vision to life through my acting. I loved researching past

productions and the actors that have played my role. Ride the Cyclone is not a musical that has

been performed a lot, and it felt like I was adding my name to this legacy of people who have

played Constance, like I now am a part of the bigger picture. Overall, I am very thankful for the

amount of work on analysis I put into this production, and I will take that with me for

productions in the future.

In looking back on where I started college and comparing that to my performance in Ride

the Cyclone, I have grown so much. I went from being a scared freshman who did not know how

to be myself and was scared to perform in front of people, to being able to be fully present as a

character onstage and love every second. I have a way more solid understanding of how my

voice functions and where I want to grow from here. Before college, I really had no formal

acting training. Now, I feel that my acting is actually my strong suit as a performer because of

the amount of work I have put into growing throughout college. I really feel I have worked so

hard and it has paid off. I hope you will be able to see that in watching this production. May this

musical bring you joy in the midst of a difficult time.

 Veltman 31

Works Cited

“Brooke Maxwell.” Broadway Licensing, 2020,

broadwaylicensing.com/creators/brooke-maxwell/.

“Brooke Maxwell.” Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, 2015,

www.chicagoshakes.com/plays_and_events/cyclone/Brooke_Maxwell.

“Jacob Richmond.” Broadway Licensing, 2020,

broadwaylicensing.com/creators/jacob-richmond/.

Maxwell, Brooke. “About.” Brooke Maxwell, 2017, www.brookemaxwell.com/about.

“Ride the Cyclone.” Wikipedia, 14 Nov. 2020.

“Works & Process at the Guggenheim: MCC Theater's Ride the Cyclone.” YouTube,
YouTube, 31 Oct. 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=pol0asE7bLU.

Zimmermann, Al. “Ride the Cyclone.” Internet Off-Broadway Database, Lucille Lortel
Foundation, 2021.

Approval
Veltman 32