photographs by Barry Wisdom

In the B Street Theatre’s current Mainstage production, Annie Baker’s “Circle Mirror Transformation,” Cynthia Zitter plays Lauren, a rebellious 16-year-old seeking an outlet for her ambitions in the footlights.

Lauren’s drive to one day nab a Tony lands her in a local community center’s “creative drama” class amidst a ragtag group of once-were and would-be thespians.

While the teenager imagined she’d be taking on the role of Maria in a staging of “West Side Story,” or essaying Emily in a mounting of “Our Town,” she finds herself frustratingly forced to participate in a never-ending series of theater “games” designed to reveal hidden truths.

Zitter, a 24-year-old Ohio native, never had to endure that kind of theatrical boot camp, but said she knows only too well what it feels like to be a small-town girl who heard the roar of the greasepaint at an early age.

“I grew up in a little farm town called Fort Recovery,” said Zitter, a member of B Street’s 2010-11 acting internship program now enjoying her first turn on a B Street stage. “We didn’t have any acting classes, and we had to travel 40 miles to reach the nearest community theater in Van Wert.”

Fort Recovery, Van Wert … one half expects to hear Zitter talk about taking a local rec class in nearby Indiana (think Pawnee in NBC’s “Parks and Recreation”).

In reality, Zitter found early tutelage in a series of summertime drama camps close to her grandmother’s home in Delaware.

“At first, my parents thought it was a phase,” she said. “But I was gung ho about what I wanted to do, and they sent me to camps, and I received a lot of support from my grandparents as well. I was pretty single-minded about theater.”

That wasn’t easy in Fort Recovery, where her high school of 400 students only put on a show every other year.

“I was pretty much the theater girl,” she admitted. “I was the artsy one.”

But rather than being mocked for her love of opening nights over barn raisings, Zitter was encouraged by her classmates’ support (“Everyone was pretty cool about it.”), as well as by the praise of her summer camp instructors.

“I remember being told early on, ‘You could do this professionally,’ ” she said.

But a full-on pro career would have to wait as she beefed up her academic training as a drama major at Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, taking on featured roles in a mix of classic and contemporary theater such as “The Crucible,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Translations” by Irish playwright Brian Friel. 

After a final summer stock season at upstate New York’s Hangar Theatre, Zitter headed west for a two-year stint with Sunnyvale’s California Theatre Center, where she toured with the company’s children’s theater troupe. Among the stops on its 2009 Pacific Northwest tour was Sacramento, where a friend of a friend was interning at B Street.

“I loved it – I thought it was really good,” said Zitter, who tried on the life of a fledgling New York actress (auditions, classes, callbacks, small films and making espresso at Starbucks) before auditioning for a place in B Street’s 2010-11 acting internship program.

Before getting the call that she’d been accepted, Zitter had added an understudy role for the lead in “One Kiss Cafe” at Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame.

“I did come into this internship with a good amount of experience,” Zitter said, “but I feel there is always more to learn, and I am learning a lot here at B Street. One huge lesson I have been learning is to let go and keep my stress level down. We interns work long, hard hours cleaning, rehearsing, pulling props, organizing, building sets, etc. The ability to manage your time and to take care of yourself is essential. Also, as someone who has pretty strong artistic convictions, I've had to learn to really trust the artists around me and participate 100 percent in helping them to achieve their vision. This is invaluable, as I have a ton to learn from these experienced professionals.”

Among the B Street veterans with whom Zitter currently shares the Mainstage are Elisabeth Nunziato as class instructor Marty, and David Pierini and Phil Cowan as fellow students Schultz and James.

“The cast of ‘Circle Mirror Transformation’ are, indeed, B Street and/or theater veterans, and I am so proud to be able to work alongside them,” said Zitter, who proudly proclaimed that her role as Lauren marks her regional theater debut. “I was fortunate to have met them and gotten to know them through other shows in my internship, and they are all so nice. Any intimidation I might have felt walking into such a group was alleviated by their welcoming attitudes. They've always treated me not as a ‘lowly intern,’ but as a professional actor, and that has made all the difference in my experience.”

Another difference Zitter credits for her continued development as an actress has been the coaching of B Street Producing Artistic Director Buck Busfield.

“I couldn't ask for a better mentor on this part of my professional journey,” Zitter said. “He is incredibly honest about the things we need to work on while also being extremely supportive. He hand-picks each intern and seems to really care about us. He’s always stopping us around the theater to check in or give advice on our latest project. As a director, he has been a lot of fun and has really turned out a good production.

“I feel like I’m taking the next step in my career,” she added. “And that feeling is pretty amazing.”

_________________________________

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

WHAT: The B Street Theatre's production of the Annie Baker comedy "CIrcle Mirror Transformation"
WHERE: B Street Theatre Mainstage, 2711 B St., Sacramento, Calif.
WHEN: Feb. 27-April 10, 2011; 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays, 2 and 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays/Fridays, 5 and 9 p.m. Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays
WHO: Directed by Buck Busfield, featuring Elisabeth Nunziato, Phil Cowan, Lyndsy Kail, David Pierini, Cynthia Zitter
HOW MUCH: $18-$30, $5 student rush
INFO: (916) 443-5300; www.bstreettheatre.org