The Theatre Department’s play direction class will present the work of nine new directors in one act plays at 8 p.m. May 3-5 in the Ophelia Parrish Severns Theatre.

The class, taught by assistant professor David Charles Goyette, directs plays from some of the best playwrights from around the country as a final assignment. The plays had to be published within the last 80 years, between 10-30 minutes in length and without heavy science, costume, light or sound effects.

These final productions represent a synthesis of numerous concepts explored in the course of the semester. Students explored composition and picturization techniques, scene analysis, how to develop a directorial approach and methods on how to work with actors.

The play direction course is required of all theatre majors in order to graduate. Admission is free for the one act plays. For more information, contact Goyette at dcgoyette@truman.edu.

May 3
“The Actor’s Nightmare”
By: Christopher Durang
Directed by: Tim Walters
An actor’s worst nightmare come true.

“Wedding Duet”
By: Lauren Wilson
Directed by: Callie Crawford
What happens after you say “I do?”

“Good Neighbors”
By: John Bartholomew Tucker
Directed by: Violet Odzinski
A forbidden romance in the dead of day.

May 4
“From the Mouths of Babes”
By: Eva Anderson
Directed by: Jessie O’Brien
A trio of disgruntled students plot revenge against their teacher.

“Land of the Dead”
By: Neil LaBute
Directed by: Seth Betzler
In New York City, a couple remembers a life-changing decision and the aftermath that ensues.

“Sure Thing”
By: David Ives
Directed by: Andrew Milhous
A witty comedy reflecting on the importance of having the perfect words to say during first impressions.

May 5
“There is No Bottom”
By: Mark O’Donnell
Directed by: Kaitlyn Chotrow
Hilarity ensues when three die-hard actors and a stage manager try to make their way through their script but end up changing lines, skipping text and one-upping each other.

“English Made Simple”
By: David Ives
Directed by: Jacque Arnold
Finally understand the twists and turns of a couple’s relationship through its various stages and use of language, with help from a handy translator.

“Banging Ann Coulter”
By: Michael Elyanow
Directed by: Brian Behrens
Four unlikely heroes relate their sexual escapades with a certain conservative commentator.

Alumnus Michael Huey (’09), a Chicago-based composer, will be on campus April 11-14 visiting theatre classes, attending rehearsals and meeting with students and faculty.

At an open presentation at 4 p.m. April 13 in the Black Box Theatre, Huey will talk about composing professionally and will play some of his music as he describes his various projects. He will also be answering questions from the audience.

Huey has composed music and designed sound for numerous theatrical productions as well as film and television advertisements. In Chicago, he has worked with such companies as Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare, Lookingglass, Adventure Stage, North Park University, The Strange Tree Group, Sideshow and many more. He has worked on several shows that have since gone to Broadway and beyond. He received a Jeff Award nomination for best original score to the production of “The Spirit Play” in 2012. In 2015, Huey composed the music for the Lance Henriksen film “Dark Awakening” in Los Angeles. He has worked with American Girl, providing music and sounds for installations in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

The Theatre Department will present the Spring 2017 labshow “The Pillowman,” April 6-8, 2017, in the James G. Severns Theatre. The production will be directed by senior theatre major Eva Trunzo.

With echoes of Stoppard, Kafka, and the Brothers Grimm,”The Pillowman” centers on a writer in an unnamed totalitarian state who is being interrogated about the gruesome content of his short stories and their similarities to a series of child murders. The result is an urgent work of theatrical bravura and an unflinching examination of the very nature and purpose of art.

Tickets are free and available one week before the show at the Theatre Box Office in the main lobby of Ophelia Parrish building. Because of limited seating, advance tickets are recommended. Tickets must be picked up in person in advance, except for our out of town guests. Reservations for out of town guests only may be made by phone 660-785-4515 and those tickets will be held at the box office until 15 minutes before show time.

 

 

The Department of Music will perform Engelbert Humperdinck’s opera “Hänsel and Gretel” March 23-26 in the Ophelia Parrish Performance Hall. Shows will begin at 8 p.m. March 23-25. A special matinee will be offered at 3 p.m. March 26. Tickets are available at the door and are $3 for students, $5 for general admission.

“Hänsel and Gretel” was initially a set of four songs that Humperdinck wrote at the request of his sister for her children. After the first four, he expanded the songs to a singspiel and eventually a full opera.

The Theatre Department will present The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls in the Ophelia Parrish Black Box Theater at 8 p.m., Oct. 27-29.

Theatre Department lab shows provide students with an opportunity to take complete responsibility for a production. The steering committee selects a play and director from numerous submissions during the semester.

This semester’s production is directed by senior theatre major Ann Acklen Brown of St. Louis, Mo. Her work throughout the years has been focused on directing. Brown’s directing credits include IPAC’s production of “Woyzeck,” assistant directing “Hamlet” and directing the one-act “Vanilla Crescents.”

About the Play
Award-winning playwright, Meg Miroshnik casts a spell with The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls. Once upon a time—in 2005—a 20-year-old girl named Annie returned to her native Russia to brush up on the language and lose her American accent. Underneath a glamorous Post-Soviet Moscow studded with dangerously high heels, designer bags, and luxe fur coats, she discovers an enchanted motherland teeming with evil stepmothers, wicked witches, and ravenous bears.

Annie must learn how to become the heroine of a story more mysterious and treacherous than any childhood fairy tale: her own. This subversive story haunts the audience, and carries a powerful message for young women living in a world where not everything ends up happily ever after.

Tickets
Tickets are free and available one week before the show at the Theatre Box Office in the main lobby of Ophelia Parrish Building. Because of limited seating, advance tickets are recommended. Tickets must be picked up in person in advance, except for our out-of-town guests. Reservations for out-of-town guests only may be made by phone 660-785-4515, and those tickets will be held at the box office until 15 minutes before show time.