Wild Production's "John Muir" Touring Schedule - 1997

The John Muir shows performed by Lee Stetson are presented in Yosemite National Park from May through October, and tour around the country during the "off-season", roughly October 1 through the end of April. The schedule below indicates confirmed engagements, though many others are pending. If your organization, community or school would like to sponsor one of these productions, please review the "production notes" below and contact Lee Stetson at:

Wild Productions
Box 811
Yosemite, California 95389
Telephone: (209) 379-2431

1997 Touring Schedule of Lee Stetson as John Muir

1997 Schedule in process.

Production Notes from Wild Productions

Dear Folks,

Thank you for your interest in Wild Productions. We have now dedicated more than a decade to successfully presenting hundreds of these entertaining and educational shows based on the writings of John Muir to many thousands of people nationwide -- at national and state parks, universities, elementary schools, museums, wilderness and environmental organizations, corporate board rooms, zoos, cruise ships, conventions, and campfires. We are delighted at the prospect of performing in your community, and will do all possible to make it an easy and rewarding experience.

1997-1998 booking dates are still available for each of the following one-person presentations.

Conversation With A Tramp; An Evening With John Muir. This show has within it the essence of Muir's biography, a number of adventure stories, is quite humorous in spots, and has as it's essential theme the value of the land ethic, centered around the loss of Hetch Hetchy Valley, Muir's last great environmental battle. Of all the Muir shows, it is probably the best introduction to both Muir the man, and to his thinking.

Stickeen and Other Fellow Mortals. This is a series of Muir's encounters with the animal kingdom - snakes, bears, wild and (hilarious) domestic sheep, the passenger pigeon etc., as well the adventure story of Stickeen, a little dog with whom Muir gets lost in a storm on an Alaskan glacier. The basic themes revolve around animal rights and the problem of extinction. The Story of Stickeen, about an hour long, is often done as single piece, particularly for schools.

The Spirit of John Muir. This show is a series of some of the grand, thrilling adventures Muir had in and around the Yosemite Valley, Alaska and Mt. Shasta, salted liberally with his wilderness philosophy, and it's theme revolves around the health and invigoration one acquires when one fully engages wildness. All of the Muir shows are performed by actor Lee Stetson.

General Information.

Length of Show. Each production has at least an hour and a half of material, and can be presented as a two-act show, requiring an intermission. However, they are often presented in an hour length format, and are frequently tailored to meet specific needs of theme and/or time. Conventions, banquets, outdoor shows and schools often have schedules requiring less than an hour for presentation, and all of these shows are easily adaptable.

Additional Offerings. Occasionally, in addition to the performance, the actor can offer one of several workshop/lecture sessions, including Acting For The Stage, The Creation of a One-Person Stage Show, and Story-telling. Lee Stetson also offers a popular lecture on Arts And the Environment. Lee also pulls material from the various productions to present the character of Muir as he would view the current day or to emphasize a particular theme.

Technical Needs. All technical needs for the various productions have been deliberately simplified, and in many cases nothing is required save that the performer be seen and heard. The requirements for full technical productions are fully described on the Technical Data Sheet enclosed.

Fee. The basic fee for all shows is $1,500 per performance, plus travel expenses and accommodations. The basic fee is negotiable in some limited situations. A reduction in the per performance fee for any booking of two or more shows is often possible. A 10% deposit is required to secure a confirmed engagement, along with a letter of confirmation citing time, place, and fee agreement. The remainder fee is due immediately after performance.

Travel Expenses. These expenses are usually calculated from Yosemite, CA, and the nearest airport is Fresno, CA. Touring expenses can sometimes be significantly reduced by sharing the costs with a number of host organizations.

Accommodations. A motel or hotel as close to the performance as possible is generally preferred.

Technical Data

Space Requirements

The playing area for any of the productions needs to be only 20 feet deep and 15 feet wide. Smaller areas may be made to work. A thrust stage is preferred, but any configuration will work well. All of the shows can be done outdoors as well.

Set

None of the sets require walls, but each requires a few furniture pieces to suggest the environment. And if the presentation is to be done in one act, without an intermission, and no longer than an hour or so, only a few of the furniture pieces may be required. A list of furniture for each production is listed below.

Lighting

Lighting should simply be focused on the playing area, with as little "bleeding" as possible. The background is best black or neutral. The operation of the lights requires no special cues, though it should allow for a simple fading up at the beginning and fading down at the end of each act.

Sound

Though not always necessary for less than two-act presentations, the actor will bring pre-show music for audience enjoyment. A good sound system (tape deck, amplifier, speakers) is required. For Conversation with a Tramp, in the two act version, internal cues are necessary, but the actor will provide a tape deck, and will require only the ability to plug into an amplifier. The plug must be,, or adaptable to, standard phone jacks, and the cues are run by the performer on stage. If the auditorium is large, has poor acoustics, or if the show is presented outdoors, a remote (lapel) mike is required.

Hand Props

These are brought to the production by the actor.

Furniture

All of the productions in their full length, two-act versions require some turn-of-the-century furniture. Other versions may require some but not all of the following furniture.

Conversation With A Tramp and Stickeen and Other Fellow Mortals. A fireplace with mantle (preferred) or a wood stove, a rocking chair and low footstool for it, a large desk and a chair to match, a coat rack, a wastebasket, and two dozen or so old books. If a wood stove is provided instead of a fireplace, another small table would be needed. Not necessary, but helpful in dressing the set, would be plants, large and small, a large throw rug, an old typewriter, and such things as a naturalist would have in his study - pine cones, fossils, rocks, etc. The Spirit of John Muir can use the identical set above, but only a stool (chair high) is absolutely necessary.

Each performance requires at least one competent technician, familiar with the auditorium's sound and lighting facilities, to help set up, run the lights, and strike the set. All of the technical needs should be in place before the performer arrives, and at least two hours before curtain, the performer and the technician will set sound and light levels. All of the furniture should be in the center of the playing area when the performer arrives for sound and light check. That's it.

Additional Materials Which Can Be Provided

Audience Program Notes, providing information on the content of the particular show(s) you've expressed an interest in, as well as biographical data on the actor and writer. These notes can be copied or edited in any way suitable to your organization. Program notes should always include the address for Wild Productions.

Photographs of the performer, for publicity purposes.

Other publicity material, quotes, reviews, articles, all of which can be freely adapted to suit your needs.

Current Touring Schedule, which may make it easier to reduce travel expenses.

Order Form for audio and video tapes.

Please write or call Lee Stetson, 209-379 2431, (after 10:00 a.m. and before 6:00 p.m., Pacific Coast Time) for information or for setting a date for a presentation. Again, we truly appreciate your interest and hope to bring one of our productions to your community or organization one day soon.