This week, JustArts spoke with Rebecca Miller '13, who is a Theater Arts major, and talked about her production 'Amaranthine,' as part of the Theater Arts Senior Festival next week.

JustArts: As part of the Theater Arts Senior Festival, you are putting on an original production entitled Amaranthine. Can you tell me more about this play?

Rebecca Miller: Well first of all, Amaranthine is defined as:
1. Of, relating to, or resembling the amaranth.
2. Eternally beautiful and unfading; everlasting.
3. Deep purple-red.
Amaranthine is a one-act play about love, loss, death and the control one may or may not have over his or her own destiny. It begs the question, "Is guiltless the same as innocent?" Amaranthine focuses on the lives and afterlives of Anne Boleyn, her brother George Boleyn and her first love, Henry Percy, the sixth Earl of Northumberland. 

JA: What inspired you to write Amaranthine?

RM: I have long been enamored of Anne Boleyn and the mystery that surrounds her life. In an endeavor to combine my passions for both theater and history for my senior thesis, I first looked to dramatic literature. I was curious to research how Anne has been portrayed from Shakespeare's Henry VIII to Howard Brenton's Anne Boleyn which premiered in 2008... I came to the conclusion that I had something different to say about Anne and therefore, because I could not find the voice that I felt captured her, I decided to use my own.

JA: How have your Theater studies at Brandeis led to your work in the senior festival?

RM: Honestly, I've been thinking about my Senior Thesis since freshman year. An opportunity to present your specific vision as an artist is absolutely thrilling. As my knowledge of theater theory and practice grew, my aesthetic tastes have changed and I have made new discoveries. As a History minor, I have taken courses mostly focused on Britain in the later Middle Ages. This play feels like the final culmination of my passions and studies. As the actress playing Anne, as well as the playwright, I attempted to create a very dangerous, smart and compelling female lead, something that is often lacking in theater today.

JA: Could you describe what the Theater Arts Senior Festival is and what it entails?

RM: The Theater Arts Senior Festival is a week of performances showcasing undergraduate Senior Theater Arts majors' work. From April 9 through 14 there will be two to three performances every evening in the Merrick Theater in the Spingold Theater Center. Seven shows (and one presentation) are sharing the same space and are working collaboratively to create a cohesive and high quality group of work.

JA: What was the process that went in to writing Amaranthine and preparing it for the stage?

RM: First, a ton of research. Then, I sifted through the primary sources I had found and decided to incorporate Anne Boleyn's last words as well as a poem she may have written while a prisoner in the Tower of London. Then the writing began. It went through many drafts, 24 to be exact. ...In the fall, I spent my time on the research and writing. In late November, I had an informal reading in my kitchen. Then more rewrites. Over the winter break there were even more re-writes. We workshopped in January and early February. More rewrites. We began our rehearsals in earnest in mid-February and my cast has had to contend with an ever-changing script. They are fantastic. Not only is the writing so important to the process, but working with actors on their feet to determine if certain moments work is vital.

JA: Who else did you work with to make the production possible?

RM: My thesis advisor, Prof. Janet Morrison (THA) and pseudo-advisor Prof. Alicia Hyland (THA) as well as Prof. Adrianne Krstansky (THA) and Prof. Jennifer Cleary (THA) who are advising and producing the festival. Thank you to our professional lighting designer, Emily McCourt, my director, Grace Fosler '14, stage manager, Betty Ko '13, as well as my fellow actors, Levi Squier '14, Steven Kline '14 and Charlie Madison '15. And of course, thank you to the other Senior Thesis ladies who are working so hard to make it all happen!

JA: What is your most memorable theater arts memory from your time at Brandeis?

RM: Working with Scott Edmiston on the Brandeis Theater Company's production of Sunday in the Park with George. It was magic.

JA: Have you taken classes at Brandeis that involved writing plays, or how did you get started writing them?

RM: No! I mean, I really wish I had, but no, I haven't taken a playwriting class here at Brandeis. Playwriting used to be something I thought was beyond my capabilities. But once I made the decision to write my own interpretation of Anne Boleyn, I discovered how much I enjoy the process.

JA: Do you hope to pursue work in theater after graduation?

RM: Yes, I do. Although I am originally from New York, I plan to remain in the Boston area and pursue a career in the theater. 

-Jessie Miller