As a freshman, Fred Ulrich '98 appeared on the cover of the July 1995 magazine in his eighteenth-century costume for The Servant of Two Masters.
Although he has not acted since, he is involved in theater at Union
as a director. Last year he fulfilled a personal goal when he directed a Mountebanks production of Six Degrees of Separation. That
play student-produced, student-directed, and student-acted-was a perfect example of the Mountebanks at their best.
Ulrich says the Mountebanks work to build theater and acting at Union. “Our goal for now is to do more theater-more small theater, informal theater, and free theater,” he says.
Through the Mountebanks, students who don't want to be theatre majors can become involved in all aspects of theatre, he explains, and their more informal performances and workshops balance productions of the Performing Arts Department.
Ulrich enjoys bringing different types of theater to Union and uses his leadership role as co-moderator of Mountebanks to “push the boundaries of a bit.” His desires have translated into non-traditional pieces that allow many students to enjoy theater and become involved, whether on stage, behind the scenes, or in the audience.
For example, during the fall term the Mountebanks presented a night of scenes in the actor's studio in the Yulman Theater. Ulrich directed a scene from Married Bliss by Mark O'Donnell, which parodied relationships and communication. “I wanted to do something simple and lighthearted that people would laugh at,” says Ulrich. Indeed, there was lots of laughter as the audience enjoyed his scene.
But Ulrich not only wanted to entertain-he wanted to teach. He says that he chose to do this scene not only because it was fun, but also because it offered some first-year students the opportunity to become involved in theater and learn a bit more about acting.
He sees Mountebanks, at its best, as “bringing out the talent of students that want to do theater,” expanding the concept of acting and directing while bringing great theater to Union audiences.