The Nether | Jennifer Haley

In 2022, I directed a play named The Nether, a sci-fi crime drama written by Jennifer Haley, a talented playwright.

Set in the near future, the story explores the dark side of the virtual reality realms (based on what we have today—the Internet).

As a Director

  • Did thorough scene and character analysis, then developed a concept and vision for how the play should be staged and interpreted as the main direction for all artistic decisions.
  • Blocking and staging. Planned out where actors will move on stage, how they will interact with each other, and the other props and set pieces.
  • Guiding and overseeing actors’ performances to help them understand and embody their characters throughout the rehearsal process.
  • Collaborated with the production team, including producers, stage managers, and other designers, to ensure that the production come together cohesively.
  • Responsible for realizing the artistic vision of the entire team for the production.

Click on the link below to take a look at some of the analyses I did for my thesis written in Mandarin Chinese. An English version of this will be done by December 2023.

Analysis of The Nether(中文版)

Working with Designers

A snippet of the process of working with the designers of this production. Click on the link below to learn more!

Directing & Designing behind The Nether (中文版)

Directing & Designing behind The Nether

Challenges & Reflection

There were some challenges throughout the process, but I appreciate them teaching me invaluable lessons to improve my skills.

  • Letting the actors develop the play directly with the designers, which was something I’d never done before.
  • Creating the artificiality of the virtual world. Couldn’t come up with the best acting style for this production in time.
  • Learning to build mutual trust between me and one of the actors.

Here is an in-depth explanation of the challenges that I wrote for my thesis written in Mandarin Chinese. An English version of this will be done by December 2023.

Challenges & Reflection (中文版)

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