The Belle of Amherst- meet director Frank D. Shutts II!

Tell us a little about yourself: 

A Nova native, I began directing at LTA in the fall of 1989, and since then I have directed over seventy shows, twenty-seven here at LTA.  I have served also as LTA’s president and on its board for many years, taught in its education department, lead Shakespeare discovery trips to England, and rustled up the occasional double-tech dinner and an opening-night party or two. 

How does this show differ from other shows you have worked on? 

Directing a monodrama (one-person show) forced me to focus more intently on the actor’s process than directing the standard multi-character play or musical.  Usually, an actor memorizes anywhere from five to fifty percent of the lines in a show.  Karen Shotts, the actress who plays Emily Dickinson, had to memorize all the lines!  In this case, an almost eighty-page monologue.  Memorization took longer because there is no dialogue, no natural give-and-take between actors.  Additionally, there is no time when the actress could run lines with other characters while not on stage.  Dickinson is always on stage. 

To help Karen accomplish this, after blocking the show, we went into “sausage rehearsals.”  A term we attributed to the unsightly and laborious process of memorization. Karen would memorize a determined number of pages, and I’d meet with her via Zoom to run them.  When enough units were memorized, we met in person again to run them with the blocking until the entire show, both acts, were memorized. Then we met in person to run the show, give it continuity, and polish the performance. 

I have directed Karen in six productions before “Belle” and have known her for thirty-two years.  This friendship and professional relationship made the sharing of ideas, the give and take between actor and director, incredibly easy and comfortable.  I stand in awe at Karen’s commitment to this show and her hard work and dedication. 

Finally, because Emily Dickinson was a real person, I had to hone up on her biographical information and her poetry so that I could point Karen in the right direction when developing Emily’s character and the pace of the show.  Luckily for me, my collegiate study of literature gave me an advantage.  My high-school introduction to Dickinson’s poetry coupled with my already emerging interest in theater led me to “The Belle of Amherst” in the late 70s.  I knew then that this was a play I wanted to direct someday.  I waited and waited and waited…  When COVID and social distancing became the norm, it was time to mount this bio-drama about Emily Dickinson, the (self-imposed) socially distant Poet.  I am so grateful to LTA for this opportunity. 

What do you want the audience to take from this production? 

A greater appreciation for Emily Dickinson and her poetry, and beyond that, for all artist who pour their heart and soul into their work. 

 

 

Frank is the director of The Belle of Amherst, on stage April 24-May 15. Tickets will be available soon! Check the website for details.