Two gentlemen of Durango
DHS theater products make name for selves

Travis Shupe, 22, stands backstage at the Santa Fe opera last summer, where he interned in 2005 as an electrician’s apprentice and worked last year as a staff electrician. During the opera’s off-season, the Durango High graduate lights shows at Baltimore’s Center Stage, the state theater of Maryland./Courtesy photo

by Judith Reynolds

Unbeknownst to each other, two gentlemen of Durango have a common destination. Like Shakespeare’s “Two Gentlemen of Verona,” Travis Shupe, 22, and Erik Andersson, 16, are taking separate paths, but the overall goal is the same: a life in professional theater.

Shupe is the backstage guy, a technical specialist in lighting. Andersson stands in front of the footlights, a performer in musical theater. Although both are young, they share common ground: Durango High School.

Last fall, Shupe landed a full-time professional job at Baltimore’s Center Stage. Andersson has been part of the professional acting company at Diamond Circle Melodrama for the past two summers. Not bad for local guys who’ve been in Mona Wood-Patterson’s well-loved “high school of the performing arts.”

Shupe’s story

Last September, Shupe (DHS class of ’02 ) assumed the role of assistant master electrician in Baltimore.

Center Stage is the state theater of Maryland. The company runs a six-show season in its two theaters. This year, Shupe will be lighting Chekhov’s “The Three Sisters,” Ariel Dorfman’s “Death and the Maiden,” the Rodgers and Hart musical “The Boys from Syracuse,” Alice Childress’ “Trouble in Mind,” Eugene O’Neill’s sole comedy, “Ah, Wilderness!”, and Naomi Wallace’s “Things of Dry Hours.”

Inspired by the DHS program, Shupe has moved fast. In an interview on his last trip home to Durango, he said he had no interest in theater before high school. But something happened freshman year.

“I got involved because of my sister, Jennifer,” Shupe said. “‘The Music Man’ sparked my interest. I auditioned for a part and played Winthrop, Miriam’s little brother – the one who sings the song with a lisp. It was a lot of fun.”

Despite more onstage roles (“All My Sons” and “The Mill on the Floss”), Shupe said he preferred the technical, nuts-and-bolts side of production.

“I’d always been interested in carpentry,” he said,” and at the high school the students build all the sets. By my senior year, I was living in the theater department.”

Shupe became Wood-Patterson’s office assistant and worked on backstage matters with Charles Ford, technical director at DHS.

“Mona and Charles knew I was interested in tech, and they allowed me to take on more and more responsibility. I stage managed two shows and did a lot of lighting design.”

As senior year approached, Shupe said he looked at many colleges. He also interviewed faculty members when he attended the 2002 Thespian Conference. However, he finally chose the University of Northern Colorado College of Performing and Visual Arts in Greeley.

“Their degree in theater arts offers an emphasis on design and tech, specifically lighting design – exactly what I wanted,” he said. “In college, I worked on so many shows, I lost track. In my senior year I designed two musicals, ‘Urinetown’ and ‘Secret Garden.’ I loved both shows – a dream to work on.”

Internships are an important part of the program, Shupe said. He made the Santa Fe connection through another Greeley alumnus, Dave Hult, master electrician at the opera company.

“The theater world is all about connections,” Shupe said. “When I was a junior looking for summer internships, I met Dave at the U.S. Institute for Theater Technicians. He offered me a summer slot as electrician’s apprentice. Through Dave, I met many more people in the field.”

Durango High sophomore Erik Andersson poses in front of the set of DHS’ recent production of “Grease” in November. In addition to playing a role in “Grease,” Andersson has spent the last two summers with the Diamond Circle Melodrama and has had roles in Fort Lewis College’s “Our Town” and “A Christmas Carol” at the Smiley Auditorium./Photo by Judith Reynolds

When Shupe graduated from college in May 2006, Hult invited him back to Santa Fe as staff shop electrician. Shupe ran the light board and supervised tech interns: “It’s a great program – very complex. We did five big shows in repertory.”

Working with international designers, a different group for each of the five operas, Shupe said he added another layer of experience to his resume. Through new connections, he landed the full-time job as assistant master electrician in Baltimore. His contract runs through the spring, just in time to re-up for Santa Fe next summer, if things work out: “In Santa Fe, they start work in the middle of May and the opera season goes through to the end of August. I’ve been very lucky. I love my work. It’s challenging, and I’ve met the right people along the way.”

Andersson’s story

Like Shupe, a life in theater called to Andersson early – and accidentally (DHS Class of ’09).

“I had the lead in my seventh-grade play,” Andersson said in a recent interview backstage at the high school. Then a student at Columbine Christian School, Andersson’s positive stage experience propelled him into more public productions.

“I saw a college audition notice for ‘Our Town,’ ” Andersson said. “It was my first experience in a real play, and it was wonderful. I got the role of the paperboy, Joe Crowell. Until then, I never thought about a career in the theater.”

After performing in Thornton Wilder’s classic, a new adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” was announced for a community theater production in Smiley Auditorium.

“I saw an audition notice,” Andersson said, “so I went for it. It was the first time I had to do solo singing. Before that, I was scared to death to sing in public. Helen Gregory was the writer-director, and she really encouraged me.”

Andersson played several parts in “Carol”: Henry, one of Bob Cratchitt’s sons, plus two different boys in the street who interact with Scrooge.

At the end of that school year (2005), the small world of theater connections turned up another opportunity. Gregory encouraged him to audition for the professional cast of the Diamond Circle Melodrama.

“They needed someone for a young female role, but I went anyway,” Andersson said. “They liked my audition, called me back and changed the role to a guy. They renamed the character Billy Bunko, and I worked all summer in that role.”

The following spring, Diamond Circle called Andersson again for the pivotal role of Ned, the Newsboy in the 2006 production of “Rags to Riches.”

“I learned a lot from the director, Eric Hoit,” Andersson said. “He runs the Great American Melodrama and Vaudeville Co. in California. He’s always prepared and very clear about the style of melodrama.”

Playing to the audience and “timing” are everything, Andersson said. As Ned, he solved most of the problems set forth in the script and wrapped up most of the scenes with one line, a look or a gesture.

“I had the tag line in every scene except one,” Andersson said. “You have to get it right or the audience doesn’t get it. Eric was very specific about where I was to look and where and how big the gesture should be.”

Andersson said he hopes to be in the melodrama cast next summer. In the meantime, he’s active at the high school in Colours, a select singing group, and he played Roger, or “Rump,” in the DHS fall production of “Grease.”

His next performance? Andersson will be Frog in a winter 2007 musical, “A Year With Frog and Toad.” The production is part of the Durango Arts Center’s Applause program for youth ages 8 to 17 and opens Feb. 16.

Andersson and Shupe, two gentlemen of Durango, grew up in nontheatrical families. Somewhere something clicked, and now they are each en route to a life in theater. •