Growth and More by Laura

5/5/2015

There’s just no good way to say it, so I’m going to rip the band-aid here and say, growing up is hard to do. But it’s real, and it’s here to stay. And for Savage Umbrella, this spring is bringing up more than just allergies with all this new growth.

RACHEL THE BEAUTIFUL

Oh, our dear, dear Rachel. She’s been away for a long time already, working and learning and growing in Maine. And now she’s graduating from the University of Maine. She’s off to teach theater and gender studies this fall at Hollins University, and then on to grand adventures and theatre making of all kinds. We love her. We miss her. We’re going to keep her hanging on in our newly created Artistic Advisory Board.

RAIN FOLLOWS THE PLOW by Rachel Nelson, July 2013

BLAKE THE KIND

She has a thousand hearts, and I think at least one of them will be left in Minneapolis for us all. Blake has gone and been a human and fallen in love. And her love is in NYC, so she’s taking one of those great leaps of life and moving. She’s already lined up to work on several projects with Title:Point Productions, and will basically be taking Brooklyn by storm, so look out, because I bet the five boroughs won’t know what hit them. We love her. We already miss her, but we're glad she'll still be working with us long distance on the Artistic Advisory Board.

THE RAVAGERS directed by Blake E. Bolan, November 2011

TANNER THE BRAVE

As in all healthy relationships, Tanner has realized when it’s time to say goodbye. Tanner and SU have grown tremendously together, and also apart. We’ve loved having his writing skillz around. He’s loved having an artistic home. But he’s smart and brave enough to realize that SU is no longer fulfilling all of his artistic needs. So with great grace and self-assuredness, Tanner is moving away from SU on to what will surely be a bright future of freelancing. If you need a playwright or director who is smart, hard-working and fun, you should call him. We love him. We already miss him. And we’re going to be his biggest cheerleaders.

RAPTURE written and directed by Tanner Curl, March 2014

CHRISTINA THE PASSIONATE

Since Christina welcomed beautiful baby Ben into the world, she’s taken a break from SU. And now with new motherhood, plus a passion for her roles with the local La Leche League, her teaching position, her zest for camping and the outdoors, and her general awesome-ness in life, she’s moving on. We love and miss her, and wish her all the best in her new pursuits.

STOP! created by Christina Forga

AMBER THE GLOBE TROTTER

Dear, sweet Amber has been living a pretty charmed existence, globe trotting about Europe. She’s been living in beautiful, mountainous Switzerland, learning German, traveling the continent and you know, curating discussions at the Zurich Film Festival, no big deal. And since she’s not sure yet where she will land after her grand Euro adventure, she’s saying good bye for now. We love her. We miss her. We’re also going to keep her hanging on in our newly created Artistic Advisory Board.

THE GOLDEN CARP direction and puppetry by Amber Davis

HEIDI THE TIRED
(jk, lol, she’s beautiful and kind and brave, too)

She is the energizer bunny. And usually she’s kicking it into the highest of gears, making all of the rest of us wonder what on earth is in her morning coffee (probably sprinkles and glitter, but we’re not 100% sure). She’s the brightest, bubbliest, smartest, fiercest one around, but it turns out she’s also a human. So like all good humans, she’s gonna rest a bit. For six months, to be exact. But then, look out, November, because we can’t even imagine how much new energy she’s going to have once she’s had a summer to read and brunch and rest. We love her, and we’re delighted we don’t have to miss her for long. Plus, we get to brunch with her. Seriously, if you haven’t brunched with her, you really, really should. She’s great at it.

Heidi as Augusta in EMMA WOODHOUSE IS NOT A BITCH

FORWARD TO TOMORROW, TODAY

So, uh, that’s a lot of change equaling a smaller SU. True. But who remains are some pretty rad folks, and we’re so excited to keep on rocking all the things we will rock.