The Maine Masque Show

Maine Masque is UMaine's student theatre organization, dedicated to supporting and producting theatre at the University of Maine. The Maine Masque is an independent organization under the jurisdiction of the University of Maine Student Government, but closely works with the School of Performing Arts to support various theater related activities on and off campus.

Each year the Maine Masque produces one main stage production as part of the School of Performing Arts season of events. The organization facilitates a student-led process of selecting the show, selecting a student director, and selecting a team of all student designers and technicians who produce this show.

The policies below govern how the selection process and production process move forward through each academic year.

Show and Director Selection Process

Maine Masque will advertise a submission process and deadline each year for the following year's Maine Masque Show. Students interested in directing the Maine Masque Show are invited to submit an application, including the title of the show they would propose to direct. The Maine Masque Council, in consultation with the Theatre Faculty, will select the director and show to be produced.

Prospective student directors should review the director requirements and guidelines for show selection carefully. The application will require signatures of script choice approval from:

• A Directing Advisor (Prof. Granke or Dr. Purvis)

• The Production Manager (Prof. Sedlock)

• The Costume Director (Prof. Foster)

If the proposed script contains elements of intimacy or violence, the application will also require a signature of approval from the Resident Fight/Intimacy Director (Prof. Granke).

Show Selection Guidelines

Maine Masque hopes to produce a wide array of diverse and interesting scripts in a myriad of styles and genres. However, for practical reasons, there are some limitations on the scripts that will accepted:

• The director should not have prior experience performing in or directing the selected title.

• Titles with significant music components will not be considered.

• Student-written works are encouraged, but it is recommended that a student should not submit an application to direct a script they also wrote.

Applicants are encouraged to meet with a Directing Advisor before beginning to search for a script. The Directing Advisor can assist in recommending titles or helping to narrow the applicant’s search based on themes, show structure, genre, or other criteria that suit the interests of the applicant.

Director Requirements

In order to ensure that students are prepared to successfully lead a cast and artistic team in the directing process, prospective directors must meet the following requirements:

• Must have taken THE216, or be concurrently enrolled, by the semester of directing assignment

• Must agree to be an Assistant Director with a faculty member in the semester prior to directing assignment

  • • Attendance at design/production meetings is a mandatory requirement

• Must agree to weekly meeting with Directing Advisor through entire process (design, production, and rehearsal)

Artistic Team Selection Process

The Maine Masque Show is designed and executed entirely by a student team. After the show and director are selected, an application process is advertised by Maine Masque to solicit student designers. All shows typically have a Scene Designer, Costume Designer, Lighting Designer, and Sound Designer. Depending on the production, there may be requests for other designers (such as a Projections Designer). 

No prior design experience is required, and students are encouraged to step out of their comfort zone and try something new through these design opportunities. However, in order to ensure a successful experience for all, there are a few requirements that prospective designers must meet.

Designer Requirements

• Must have taken THE200, or be concurrently enrolled, by the semester of design assignment

• Must agree to be Assistant Designer with a faculty/staff member in the semester prior to design assignment

  • • Attendance at design/production meetings is a mandatory requirement

• Must agree to weekly meeting with Design Advisor through entire process

• Costume Designers must have time in their weekly  schedule to attend  fittings

  • • Please discuss with Costume Director, Prof. Alexis Foster, if unsure what this may mean

• All designers must attend design meetings, production meetings, crew views, technical rehearsals/dress rehearsals

  • • Please discuss with Production Manager, Prof. MJ Sedlock, if unsure about dates or time commitment

Show and Team Selection Timeline

Each spring semester, the show and team will be selected for a production in the following spring, one year later. The process of applications and selection will generally proceed as follows.

2nd Week of Classes CALL FOR PROPOSALS

• Application documents and guidelines are distributed to all theatre participant lists

• An “info session” is held to orient students to the process and answer questions

• Requirements for both director and designer roles are announced

• Deadlines and dates for show’s design, production, and rehearsal process are announced

• Theatre assignment for show is announced

+ 6 Weeks Proposal Deadline

• Proposals, along with script PDF, and signature for all required approvals are due

+ 2 Weeks Applicant Interviews

+ 1 Week Application Selected

+ 1 Week CALL FOR DESIGNER APPLICATIONS

+ 2 Weeks Designer Application Deadline

+ 1 Week Designers Selected (Last Week of Classes)

Please see the 2027 Maine Masque Show Selection Schedule for the specific application and submission dates that will be advertised in Spring 2026 for the Spring 2027 Maine Masque show.

Design Timeline

One semester prior to the semester of performance.

Please see the The Glass Menagerie show webpage for specific dates related to the 2025 show process.

Director and designers should each schedule a weekly check-in meeting with their advisor to discuss the questions, content, or other information they will be bringing to each team meeting. Advisors will assist students in translating the general requirements of each meeting into specifics for each discipline.

WEEK 1
Show Process Masterclass (First week in October)

• Educational session for entire show team

• Overview of design process, production process, team member expectations, how to utilize an advisor, communication standards, etc.

WEEK 2
Initial Research

• Director sets the direction for the show

  • • Why this script? Why here? Why now?

    • Concepts, imagery, colors, or symbols that they see as essential to telling the story

    • Specifics about how they would like to use the space, or other logistics that will be pertinent to the designer

• Designers read script and come with initial images (or other content) to begin a conversation about their impressions of the show and ideas for design

  • • Research content may literal or evocative

• Designers may also bring questions for director and/or production staff about the technical needs of the script

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

WEEK 3
Research, Refined

• Designers read script again, keeping in mind what they have learned in the Initial Research meeting.

• New research images/content are brought to share with the team

  • • This content should start to move more toward literal ideas for what might be seen on stage

• Rough sketches, preliminary ground plans, pencil renderings, and other means of communicating ideas are welcome

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

WEEK 4
Initial Sketches and Concepts

• Some tangible sense of each design is expected at this meeting

  • • Scenery-- prelim. ground plan, rough sketch, and/or rough white model

    • Lights-- color palettes for major scenes; ideas for specials, practicals, or other effects

    • Costumes-- pencil sketches with color palettes or fabric swatches

    • Sound-- compilation of music, atmospherics, and/or sound effects to give a sense of direction for major scenes/moments

    • Projections-- sample imagery/video, as appropriate for production

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

• Production Manager, Technical Director, Costume Director, and other production staff may begin to provide some feedback and questions regarding feasibility of the design ideas

WEEK 5
Sketch/Concept Revisions

• Designers refine their initial sketches/concepts based on feedback and questions from the director and/or production staff

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

• Production Manager, Technical Director, Costume Director, and other production staff will provide feedback and questions regarding feasibility of the design ideas

WEEK 6
Preliminary Designs

• Designs are presented with all major elements represented:

  • • Scenery-- ground plan and finished sketch or white model; ideas for color palette

    • Lights-- preliminary cue list for major transitions; refining of prior work on color palette, etc.

    • Costumes-- preliminary color renderings

    • Sound-- preliminary cue list for planned audio; refining of prior work on sound compilation

    • Projections-- preliminary images/video for all planned projections

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

• Production Manager, Technical Director, Costume Director, and other production staff will provide feedback and questions regarding feasibility of the design ideas

WEEK 7
Preliminary Design Revisions

• Designers refine their preliminary designs based on feedback and questions from the director and/or production staff

• Director provides feedback and questions in response to designers’ content

• Production Manager, Technical Director, Costume Director, and other production staff will provide feedback and questions regarding feasibility of the design ideas

WEEK 8
Final Designs

• Final designs, including all components and details, are presented. Advisors will work with students to define what is necessary to present for each design area on the given show.

• Director and production staff may provide minimal feedback, but the hope is that most, if not all, details have been discussed prior to this meeting and this is a presentation of the culmination of all the previous work

WEEK 9
OFF (Thanksgiving Break)

WEEK 10
Technical Revisions

• Production staff discuss preliminary work in costing the designs, sourcing materials, or otherwise examining the design feasibility in detail.

• Production staff will ask questions, present alternatives, and ask for feasibility revisions, if needed

WEEK 11
Technical Revisions (Last week of fall classes)

• Designers respond to any previous requests for technical revision

• Production staff finalize approval of feasibility to the extent that is possible in advance of beginning fabrication and installation

• After auditions, all actors come in for measurements before the end of the semester

WINTER BREAK

• Costume designers begin sourcing materials and provide links via the budget spreadsheet based on actor’s measurements

• Scenic designers choose paint colors and begin sourcing specialty props

• Other designers may be assigned tasks based on the specialty needs of a particular show

Production Timeline

Performance Semester

Please see the The Glass Menagerie show webpage for specific dates related to the 2025 show process.

WEEK 1
Re-Group and Check-in (Second week of classes)

• Revisions as a result of casting, if needed

• Overview of plans for build/acquisition of design elements

• Address any new ideas, challenges, or other issues that arose during the hiatus

• Discussion of rehearsal needs-- stage taping, rehearsal props/costumes, etc.

• Costume designers must have complete list of items that need to be purchased via the budget spreadsheet, complete with pricing and links

WEEK 2
OFF (Meeting can be added, if needed)

WEEK 3
Pre-Rehearsal Prodcution Meeting

• How to communicate between rehearsal and production

• Establishing and utilizing the Cast Deputy and Cast Advisor

• Final check-in on rehearsal needs

• Start of First Costume fittings

WEEKS 4-9
Rehearsals and Build/Acquisition/Installation

• Production meetings continue weekly

• New items for discussion from both rehearsal and production will be discussed as they arise

WEEK 10
Technical and Dress Rehearsals; Opening Weekend

WEEK 11
Pickup Rehearsal and 2nd Weekend of Performance