Members of Off the Lake pose in the Lawrence Tower Ballroom. Off the Lake’s new performance space remains unknown. Credit: Taylor Stanton, Off the Lake president.
Off The Lake Productions, a service-based student theater organization at Ohio State, has had an unprecedented beginning to its spring semester.
Off The Lake — also known as OTL — has heavily relied on Lawrence Tower as a performance space since 2019, OTL’s musical director Lauren Meadows, also a third-year in choral music education and theater, said in an email. Beyond scheduled performances, OTL also used the facility to store costumes, props and set-building materials for every show.
Once Lawrence Tower shut down due to a mold outbreak, the group had to search for a new space, said Taylor Stanton, a fourth-year in public affairs and OTL’s president.
“All of our workshop space is in Lawrence Tower,” Stanton said. “Everything we own crew-wise exists there. All of our pit rehearsals are there and so are some of our actual rehearsals. We have lost about two weeks of time to build our sets at this point.”
Meadows said she and other OTL board members have been in contact with the university to find new accommodations, but on such short notice, it has been difficult to find a suitable space to host their productions.
“There are just, unfortunately, not a lot of options on campus that can accommodate our productions,” Meadows said. “We originally were told we were going to be back in Lawrence after the initial shutdown, but that hope was short-lived when we were removed again, which was pretty disappointing.”
Stanton said OTL has been communicating with people from the Department of Dance, Morrill Tower and other South campus dorms to take advantage of any free spaces for club rehearsals.
OTL’s “Night of One Acts” Peer Theatre performance was recently moved to the Baker Hall Performance Space, with shows set to begin Friday, according to the club’s Instagram page.
The future locations of OTL’s February play, “The Trojan Women,” and March-April musical, “Legally Blonde: The Musical” remain unknown at this time.
“We are anticipating that we are going to have to move our shows off campus, which is really unfortunate because it makes our shows a lot less accessible to campus residents,” Stanton said.
Stanton said one of the main benefits of being based in Lawrence Tower was the fact it was within walking distance of campus and allowed students to support OTL’s service organization partner without being out of the way.
Meadows said she didn’t expect these challenges to arise in her first year as OTL’s music director. But she said these obstacles, while stressful, have allowed her to “persevere in the face of adversity.”
“I am still having an absolute blast in rehearsals and at our community events with people I can call my best friends,” Meadows said. “No setback could ever dull the spirit of this organization, and we will continue making theater together and serving the community no matter what comes our way!”
Shannon Mullally, a residential experience specialist at the university and an advisor for OTL, said in an email she has been working closely with Ohio State’s Office of Student Life to connect OTL with performance spaces and locations on campus that are within the organization’s budget.
“I am encouraged by the student organization’s commitment to their craft,” Mullally said. “Their ability to troubleshoot and compromise is admirable, and I know their passion and desire will mean their uncertain future won’t be uncertain for long. I am confident that there will be a resolution to OTL’s space needs in the near future.”
As a whole, OTL is incredibly thankful for members of the Ohio State community who have been supporting and encouraging the organization during this tough time, Stanton said.
“I have gotten texts from probably 50 people having ideas and connections, trying to help save our organization,” Stanton said. “We also have had a GoFundMe that has been pretty successful.”
Though the future of OTL’s go-to performance space is currently uncertain, the organization’s spirits are higher than ever, Meadows said.
“I’ve said it multiple times; this show will happen in my living room before it gets [canceled],” Meadows said. “This group of individuals is too passionate, resourceful and talented for us to never find a solution or give up. Our entire organization, as well as our friends, families and the local community has rallied together to help us, and I have no doubt that the shows will go on.”
To learn more about OTL’s upcoming shows and progress as an organization, visit the group’s Instagram page. The organization is currently raising funds through GoFundMe to garner support.
