(openPR) - Improvised Steampunk Miniseries

Austin, Texas – December 21, 2012

Gnap Theater Projects is proud to present “Steam, Rose Colored Goggles, and the Flight of The Victoriana”, an improvised steampunk miniseries. Join the crew of The Victoriana on their highflying adventures as they engage the most revelatory and exquisite of 19th century alternative universe technology. Delight in their use of the refined art of improvisational acting and mummery as they explore those portions of the world still marked terra incognita. Discover the definition of this neologism “steampunk” in a world where the sky’s the limit!

Director Audrey Sansom: “The most challenging thing about directing Steam, Rose Colored Googles, and the Flight of the Victoriana is that most people don’t even know what Steampunk is. And even after a conversation on the themes of the Victorian period, the Industrial Revolution, the Enlightenment, and the Progressive Movement, the anachronistic technologies inspired by Jules Verne, and the cultural niche that is finding itself at home all across the nation has piqued their interest, they are most shocked by the idea of an improvised serial narrative. Or as I am calling it an Improvised Steampunk Miniseries.
The clear advantage to a serial narrative is the pleasure and satisfaction we receive from watching a hero’s journey play out. And the infinite possibility of a Steampunk world affords the performer a universe of creative freedom. I decided to approach this in three discrete ways. The set is minimal, giving the impression of sails and industry, with the players themselves creating environments, inventions and aesthetics all set to a Steampunk score arranged improvisationally every evening. However, in improv we usually create “throw away” characters that we see for a scene or a show but never meet again, usually playing into their own natural type. By embodying a series of archetypes we create alter egos for ourselves which are clear and distinct from one another. The Crew of the Victoriana is able to perform as the same characters every night in fresh new ways that are inspired and derived from a very real part of ourselves. In contrast the part of the cast called the Machine brings to life the world around our heroes through the use of physicality, scene painting, characterization, and object puppetry. The Machine is the backbone of the show, the driving forces, the friends, foes and foils.
With this simple framework we are soon to set sail on an adventure where the sky’s the limit. Come join us for the drama, the inspiration, the daring adventures. Because in a Steampunk world we are the engineers of our own destiny, not bound by the way the world sees us, or the way we see ourselves, but by the way we dream ourselves to be.”

Conceived and directed by Audrey Sansom.

The cast includes:

The Crew:
The Ingenue -- Elizabeth Brammer
The Amazon -- Emily Breedlove
The Duchess -- Julie Gillis
The Young Adventurer -- Brady James
The Veteran -- Marc Majcher
The Engineer -- Kevin Miller
The Reluctant Hero -- Jeff Mills
The Wild Heart -- Audrey Sansom
The Pixie -- Gricelda Silva
The Rogue -- Aaron Walthers

The Machine:
Gear Shift -- Howard Katz
Bolt -- Ashlee Medlin
Leather Strap -- Joel Osborne
Crank -- Jayme Ramsey
Alloysia -- Leng Wong

For more information, including calendar listings, please visit:
www.gnaptheater.org/shows/steam/

Tickets available online at:
steam-eorg.eventbrite.com/

Fridays and Saturdays only
January 6th through January 28th, 8pm
$10 general admission, $5 for students, $40 for an eight show pass

Salvage Vanguard Theater
2803 Manor Road, Austin, TX 78722
www.gnaptheater.org

For PSA: Blurb: Gnap! Theater Projects presents Steam, Rose Colored Goggles, and the Flight of The Victoriana, an improvised steampunk miniseries.

For Media Pictures, Interviews, or Media Comps: please contact Shannon McCormick at shannonmccormick@gmail.com.

Gnap! Theater Projects produced the Out of Bounds Improv Festival and Miniature Golf Tournament from 2005 to 2008, produces shows by the improv duo Get Up, and various theatrical events and endeavors around town. Dusk, their fall show, is a loving send up of a certain recent vampire franchise.

Gnap! was the recent recipient of a Best of Austin Critics pick for Best Comedy Tribute to the Deeply Geekified! for their show Guilds of Steel.

All Gnap! Theater Projects shows are presented in association with Merlin Works.

Gnap Theater Projects @ SVT
2803 Manor Road
Austin, Texas 78722

Telephone: (512) 474-SVT-6 (474-7886)

Shannon McCormick
shannonmccormick@gmail.com