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Behind the Curtain of Front & Center

Front & Center, one of the university's most visible annual events in support of scholarships, is put together like a giant jigsaw puzzle, with the pieces coming together perfectly for one magical evening. In the beginning, there are the Big Ideas. If there is to be a Big Show, there must be a Big Star. And if there is to be a Big Show featuring a Big Star, then a Big Cast is required. A large venue and an elaborate dinner are important, along with many beautiful people who must be on hand to share the event.

Like most magic, producing Front & Center is more complex than it appears to the untrained eye. Still, the magicians behind the event make it seem simple, elegant and, most of all, fun.

A University Advancement staff of five works year-round on event logistics, marketing and fundraising. Its members put together pieces of the giant puzzle of the 11th annual Front & Center 2006 in spring 2005 during the first on-campus strategy meetings. These meetings are followed by a series of planning sessions in fall with the Blue Ribbon Committee, chaired by Rodger Talbott, and the production team members who support the event. And during this time, Gladys Knight is selected as the evening's headliner. Writer/lyricist Carolyn Gardner begins work in earnest on script and songs shortly after the star is selected.

This work progresses as auditions are held in December, drawing close to 100 enthusiastic students to tryouts in the Performing Arts Center. Final selections of cast members are made immediately. Food tasting takes place in January.

Three weeks prior to the show, adrenaline is kicking in. Student performers are ready to hit the dance floor. Singers are ready to sing. Actors are bursting to act. But first, some serious groundwork needs to be established. There are rules to discuss. Information forms to fill out. Schedules to address. Director Roger Castellano '83 begins by sitting the cast down for its first meeting, a major "talk down" session.

Once those hurdles are cleared, costumer Karen Weller - who has been shopping and creating prior to this time - must measure each performer for every costume. And then the cast's real work begins, with Mitchell Hanlon, conductor and musical director, teaching the vocals and then Kym Andrews, choreographer, working with the dancers.

Rehearsal schedules begin during winter break, and continue during the first week of the spring semester. They are intense. And students are required to remain in school full-time, attending all their classes, while Front & Center rehearsals are under way. No lenience is granted to performers in the show.

The day before the show finally dawns. Rehearsal at the Anaheim Pond makes the upcoming show a reality. Carpenters put the sets together. Bright Ideas lighting technicians - the firm is owned by alumnus Greg Christy '85 - develop the colored tones. The cast works on its numbers. Adrenaline is running higher than ever…

The Big Night is here. Cast members grab 40 winks in sleeping bags on the floor of the Mighty Ducks' locker rooms between rehearsal and showtime. At 4:30 p.m., female cast members are backstage in the hockey arena, doing their hair and makeup. Male cast members merely shave and then play video games in the coaches' office. As the evening progresses, university representatives are greeting honorees and talent, working with media covering the event, directing six different private parties for VIPs and manning the check-in area.

When it's time for dinner, Regency Caterers somehow successfully serve several courses of 930 meals. At 7:30 p.m., doors open to the general public. Approximately 6,500 people will attend the show. And when the 11th annual Front & Center show begins at 8 p.m., the band - ensconced in the visitors' locker room - begins playing via amplification. They sound terrific.

Jitters at a minimum, the student performers are cool, calm, professional - the show comes off with nary a glitch. Applause is frequent and hearty. As Gladys Knight performs, the students relax and watch via video feed backstage, marveling at her talent.

In the weeks following the event, debriefing meetings take place with the Blue Ribbon Committee and production team. The various groups determine what Big Ideas went right and which might have gone better during this year's Big Show - in preparation for next year's Big Night.