Act I: Quantity is a Quality in Itself
The theatre at UCF as undergone many changes since it began, and one of the most important was the increased involvement as more students became interested in performing. As participation grew the range of possible plays and quality improved.
Humble Origins
Opening in 1968, it may seem rather surprising that just one year later students from Florida Technical Institute (FTU) began performing their first plays. This school for budding engineers and scientists could not keep their artistic spirit hidden and in 1969 performed as their first play Absence of a Cello.[1] During the infancy of theater at what would become the University of Central Florida, it, like the university that housed it, was entering a stage of growth. The 1970 performance of The Glass Menagerie boasted only 4 cast and 10 staff members.[2] With so few involved, early theater productions were limited; they could not be complicated and the props and equipment could not be too expensive. The Glass Menagerie required only 4 actors and could be performed with a single set.
The Arts Begin to Snowball
Eventually the effort of those driven students in the 70’s paid off. Their dedication to the arts in addition to the rapid expansion of central Florida allowed the University to diversify its degree options. Mirroring the switch from Florida Technical University to the University of Central Florida, in 1981 the College of Arts and Sciences at UCF was formed and with it came the introduction of a theater department and major. A publication from the Central Florida Future in 1981 advertised an upcoming performance of Shakespeare's The Tempest, giving a brief introduction of the play as well as data on who was involved and the technical aspects. The budget of $2600 was unprecedented and the article described the ways in which the money was spent. For example, the department purchased a new revolving set, something that was unavailable in the original days of the 1970’s.[3] Compared to earlier performances, the theater had progressed significantly as it received increased funding and support. For this performance, The Tempest had a cast of 15 with 25 people supporting them. The program was still growing, however, and had not reached the participation it achieved in later years. One way this was shown was that the department still held open tryouts for the whole university’s student body, an opportunity that became more exclusive as the theater grew.[4]
A Legacy is Created
By the 1990’s, UCF’s Theater Department was flourishing and began to look a lot like it does today. It offered 5 undergraduate degrees and 2 minors.[5] In the 1990 performance of Hell Bent for Good Times there were 6 cast members with 49 additional crew members working on the play. As seen by the play bill for the performance, even the quality of the cast list had improved in addition to the wide variety of positions available to help the theater. This increased support and participation over time is markedly different from the early days when there was little funding and few students involved. Unlike the 1970’s, people are coming to UCF purely for theater thereby improving the overall enthusiasm and quality of productions. In its review in the Central Florida Future, Hell Bent for Good Times was described as a hit, with tickets selling out each night[6]. Even this description meant something different than if it had been said a decade before: the buildings and stages in the theater department had grown over time so that selling out in the 1990's meant a lot more people came than to a sold out show in the 1970's.
1. "Department History" UCF Theater, accessed January 3, 2017, http://theatre.cah.ucf.edu/history.php.
2. 1970 Glass Menagerie Play Bill, University of Cetnral Florida Theare Program Collection, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
3. Central Florida Future, Vol. 13 No. 20, February 6, 1981" (1981). Central Florida Future. 421.
4. Ad for Theater Tryouts, University of Cetnral Florida Theare Program Collection, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
5."Department History" UCF Theater, accessed January 3, 2017, http://theatre.cah.ucf.edu/history.php
6. "Review of UCF Play", Central Florida Future, Vol. 23 No. 25, November 13, 1990 (1990). Central Florida Future. 1029.