By Emily GlazerPLAY Writer
For Brad Weinstock, Communication ’06, a normal night consists of an embarrassing erection on stage, throwing M&Ms at random people and attempting to spell words like Hasenpfeffer. On top of all that, he’s getting paid for it.
After graduating from Northwestern in the spring, Weinstock rewound about a decade to play Isaac “Chip” Berkowitz, his 12-year-old character in Chicago’s production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.
He says he was prepared for this type of role after always getting cast as young parts at Northwestern.
“It was fun to remember that part of my life and try to convey that on stage – the time of the crushes that seemed like the end of the world,” he says.
In September, Weinstock’s contract was extended an additional six months. “I’m lucky enough that this is my only job right now and I can support myself on it,” he says.
So how did Northwestern play a part in Weinstock’s life?
First of all, it got him the job. After performing in the New York Showcase, where top students in the theater program perform for theater professionals, a casting director for Spelling Bee approached Weinstock. After a series of callbacks, Weinstock received an offer for the part.
“It was like winning the lottery,” he says.
Weinstock says he’s learned a lot the past few months and specifically notes that non-dancers shouldn’t be afraid of going to dance classes while at school.
“I had a dance call in New York that was shameful,” he says. He says at NU you can get away with not being a dancer, but not in the real world.
Also, Weinstock focuses on the experience of being in a professional show and how much it differs from school productions. Since all the actors in the show have the score beforehand, they are expected to learn the music within the first two days of rehearsal.
“At Northwestern, there is an educational environment – we were still students so it wasn’t our job,” he says. But Spelling Bee was blocked in three days, and the actors were expected to be off-book six days after, he says.
Weinstock uses audition techniques, decision-making skills and callback etiquette he learned at NU. He also stresses dramaturgy, the ability of shaping a character into a form that can be acted.
“Spelling Bee isn’t Chekhov or Shakespeare, but I made sure that I watched some actually spelling bees- documentaries like Spellbound or word-related competitions like Wordplay,” Weinstock says.
Weinstock also says he and the other actors spent time at a sixth-grade classroom.
“These were all techniques and methods that I don’t think I would’ve thought to do without Northwestern,” he says.
But Weinstock isn’t the only Wildcat in the Bee. Music Director Greg Brown, Communication ’02, joins him in the Chicago production. Greta Lee, Communication ’05, plays speller Marcy Park in the Boston cast (originally San Francisco) and Willis White, Music ’02 and WCAS ’02, understudies the same role as Weinstock on Broadway.
Through the hard work and anxiety about “making it,” finding alternative careers is sometimes a harsh reality.
“We spend so much time at school being warned about such a hard life. I was definitely ready to be waiting tables and stuff like that…it’s certainly a small miracle,” Weinstock says.
Medill freshman Emily Glazer is a PLAY writer. She can be reached at [email protected].
