Fellow UCSD Student Makes Fair Play Debut in Tartuffe
LA JOLLA, Calif. — There are many people out in the world who do not enjoy public speaking of any kind. It can be scary, terrifying in fact. But it can also be thrilling. People like Vanessa Fitzpatrick find solace in public speaking in the form of live theatre.
Vanessa Fitpatrick’s passion for theatre began back in high school where her theatre teacher, who she considered mean at times, helped her get over her stage fright. “I was so shy prior to that class and now I’m not so shy. Like I don’t turn into a tomato whenever I talk anymore. Well sometimes, I do, but it’s not as bad.” Although she wasn’t getting the leading roles in the plays she performed in, she found that she still loved acting.
As a third-year transfer student currently majoring in communications and minoring in theatre, Vanessa has found her calling in Fair Play. She recently joined the theatre company this quarter and has been cast in her first play as a UCSD Triton.
Fair Play opened back in October 2017 by a group who wanted to provide more opportunities for UCSD students to showcase their work in the theatre industry. Their motto “less talk, more art” expresses how the organization works to produce a welcoming and fun atmosphere for those interested in the performing arts. Currently, Fair Play productions are free and open to the public with performances taking place mainly in Price Center Theatre.
In her debut performance as Marine in Fair Play’s Tartuffe, Vanessa Fitzpatrick drew upon past experiences from her high school and community college theatre productions. In Tartuffe, Mariane is being forced by her father to marry the manipulative Tartuffe, even though she was already promised to her true love, Valere. Castmates have commended Vanessa for her rendition of such a naive and innocent girl.
Elena Browne, a fellow Fair Play member and current classmate of Vanessa’s, believed that she did an astounding job playing Mariane. Brown described Mariane as someone heavily dependent on others, “But underneath, I always saw an edge of individuality and badass-ness that is hard to pull off, but Vanessa did it.”
Another Tartuffe castmate, Mariella Vizcarra, had nothing but praise for Vanessa Fitzpatrick’s performance. Because Vizcarra was one of few actors who had extensive scenes with Vanessa, she was able to notice the small nuances Vanessa brought to her character others may not be privy to. Vizcarra explained how Vanessa was able to capture the essence of the character by incorporating childish characteristics inherent to Mariane, while also managing “to create this great balance between a stubborn child and woman who is in love.”
Although Vanessa was extremely nervous for her performance on opening night, she did a fantastic job in creating the personality director Alexa Mark had envisioned for Mariane. Mark knew she and her team had made the right decision when they saw Vanessa develop the true nature of Mariane’s character. Mark also knew Vanessa would do well as Mariane because “she was always on top of everything and I know she worked really hard on making strong choices for her character.” She described Vanessa’s performance as both hilarious and impeccable.
While her experiences with Fair Play have been positive and fun, Vanessa Fitzpatrick noted that the newly formed organization still had a lot of room for improvement. The organization is yet to be recognized by UCSD as a fully functioning theatre company, which provides a number of obstacles for its members. For one, Vanessa explained how they were unable to secure the much needed rehearsal spaces. “We were practicing our first run through of this script in Geisel, by Audrey’s. And you know that’s just not right.”
Her colleagues have agreed there are needs for improvements in Fair Play as the organization moves forward in establishing itself as a legitimate theatre company. A problem that needs addressing is better communication between Fair Play and other theatre companies on campus. Fair Play is one of five student-run theatre organizations on campus and has to compete for rehearsal space and showcase dates against companies such as Company 157 and UCSD’s theatre department.
The lack of communication has led to many conflicting schedules where companies book events for the same day or restricts a member from working on another project. This could prove troublesome next quarter for Vanessa since she has expressed her interest in continuing with Fair Play and also look into joining UCSD’s theatre department productions.
Despite these complications, Fair Play’s Tartuffe, the company’s first full production, was a success. On opening night, Price Center Theatre was sufficiently filled as friends and family came in support of the students who dedicated much of their time to put on a spectacular performance. The cast and crew did a wonderful job in constructing a play that engaged the audience so well. The script was intriguing, the actors’ comedic timing was spot on throughout, and overall it was a remarkable event.
With an outstanding performance in the books, Vanessa says she hopes to continue on her path of acting by becoming involved in local theatre in the future. She is not focused on becoming a household name, but instead to just do what she loves. “I’m sure going to Broadway or whatever would be super fulfilling but there’s something so nice about investing so much time and seeing from the beginning to the end of it all.”
At the end of the day, Vanessa Fitzpatrick wants to share her passion with others and keep the spirit of theatre alive. “How often do you get to see free, good theatre at this school, especially since everything is so STEM oriented, you’ve got to keep theatre and the arts alive. It’s really important that you come support theatre, it’s a really great show that’s put in a lot of work and love.”
