Drama Department

Productions

2017

MELANCHOLY PLAY: a chamber musical

by Sarah Ruhl and Todd Almond
directed by John Michael Rezes '18
senior project members; John Michael Rezes '18, Whitney Brady '18 and Daisy Walker '18
Open to Campus Only
presented through special arrangements with Samuel French, Inc.
This production is sponsored in part by the E.J. Safirstein '83 Memorial Fund
8:00pm
Tilly’s melancholy is of an exquisite quality. She turns her melancholy into a sexy thing, and every stranger she meets falls in love with her. One day, inexplicably, Tilly becomes happy, and wreaks havoc on the lives of her paramours..

October 26, 27 and 28 2017
Powerhouse Theater

Jimmy Pavlick original play - Title TBA

a senior project in Drama
directed by TBA
Open to the Public
an original play - work in progress
8:00pm

November 3, 2017
Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film

THE SPITFIRE GRILL a musical

by Fred Alley, James Valcq, and Lee David Zlotoff
directed by Christopher Grabowski
a senior project in Drama: Imani Russell '18
Campus Only
presented through special arrangements with Samuel French, Inc.
Spitfire Grill depicts the journey of a young woman just released from prison who decides to start her life anew in a rural Wisconsin town called Gilead and finds a place for herself working at Hannah's Spitfire Grill. It is for sale but there are no takers for the only eatery in the depressed town, so newcomer Percy suggests to Hannah that she raffle it off. Soon, mail is arriving by the wheelbarrow full and things are definitely cookin' at the Spitfire Grill. -Samuel French Inc. and adaptation by Imani Russell '18
8:00pm

November 16, 17, and 18 2017
Powerhouse Theater

CRIMES OF THE HEART

by Beth Henley
directed by Shona Tucker
senior project members: Tonya Ingerson '18, Arianna Sacristan- Benjet '18, Anisa Threlkeld '18, Christine Honore '18
Open to the Public
presented through special arrangements with Dramatists Play Service Inc.
Crimes of the Heart, Beth Henley’s award-winning tragic comedy, follows three sisters as they weather crisis after crisis in Hazlehurst, Mississippi. After the youngest sister shoots her husband, the sisters gather at their grandfather’s house for support. Their reunion reignites past drama, and reveals secrets the sisters must each come to terms with.
8:00pm

November 30, December 1 and December 2 2017
Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film

HUNTRESS a working title

written by Ariel Atlas, Jenna Doherty, and Elizabeth Snyderman
directed by Ariel Atlas '17 and Jenna Doherty '17
Not Open to the Public - Campus only
A quirky comedy loosely adapted from the mythology surrounding the Greek goddess of the hunt, Artemis, and her followers. Through a series of vignettes set in a non-linear time straddling the contemporary and the ancient, Artemis is reframed as asexual and aromantic in a world that offers women few options outside of marriage. As Artemis crafts an alternative lifestyle with her cult, Huntress examines the role of female friendship in patriarchal resistance. Through glimpses into the lives of these women, the play remembers as the friends love, laugh, play, drink, run, fight, and cry together for as long as they are able. Ultimately, Huntress is a story about love, love in many forms, and how love can be an instigator for change.
a senior project in Drama
8:00pm

April 6, 7, 8 2017
Powerhouse Theater

This production is sponsored in part by the E.J. Safirstein '83 Memorial Fund

TRIPPIN' THROUGH THE MUD: A diversity reading

written and directed by Shona Tucker
Open to the Public - Reservations are required
"Trippin' Through Mud" is the third segment of a trilogy of piece I've written currently titled Mississippi Mud. These pieces speak to the Black experience in America from slavery to the present and explore themes of struggles with self-definition, forgiveness, and reckoning with social customs and norms. The pieces explore moments of the Second Great Migration of African Americans, including episodes of rape, mafia violence, homosexuality, absolution and redemption. "Trippin" is a crazy road trip of two Black women back to the South, back to the core of themselves.
8:00pm
A faculty presentation

February 16, 17, 18 2017
Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST: a queer adaptation

based on the works of Oscar Wilde, adaptation by Christian Lewis '17*
Open to the Public - Reservations required
directed by Darrell James and John Michael Rezes '18
This adaptation queers the 1895 classic by exploring the relationship between Jack and Algernon as they explore their sexualities. Set in modern day America, this work confronts the politics of homophobia, living in the closet, coming out to family, and the pressures to have a straight marriage. Although Jack loves Algernon, Algernon is unsure what he wants. Afraid to come out, Jack proposes to Gwendolen so he can hush rumors about his sexuality. Thankfully Gwendolen seems as disinterested in procreation as Jack. Things get complicated though when Algernon meets Cecily and falls in love, leaving Jack behind. Over it all stands Lady Bracknell, as set on heterosexuality as the Victorians were.
8:00pm

April 27, 28, 29 2017
Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film