Students Produce Fun, Carefree One-Act Plays
From the costumes to set design to direction, the annual One-Act
Play Festival at Alma College is a series of productions led by
students. For the first time in years, the plays for the 2008 festival
were chosen with the intent to be funny and lighthearted.
Alma College Theatre presents the One-Acts at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21
and Saturday, Nov. 22 and 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 23 in the Remick Heritage
Center’s Strosacker Theatre. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors
62 and up, and free for Alma College staff, students and youth 18 and
under. Seating is reserved. Call (989) 463-7304 for ticket information.
“This the first time the One-Acts have not included any serious piece,”
says faculty director Joe Jezewski. “The plays are fun and communicate
in a more humorous way than past productions.”
The seven plays chosen by the student directors vary in topic, ranging
from an office romance to a story about four women who explore their
self-esteem.
“The Second Beam” by Joan Ackermann, directed by Rockford senior
Linnae Caurdy, concerns four women who explore their own strengths and
weaknesses while auditioning for a production involving the question of
how to freeze a beam of light. Eventually, they become illuminated to
their own self-esteem and confidence.
“Courting Prometheus” by Charles Forbes and directed by Grosse
Ile senior David Dyer is a romantic comedy about a couple separated by
a cubicle wall. The woman, hurt in past relationships, is not
interested in the man’s persistent and excessive attentions. Her
disinterest also becomes a wall between them like the cubicle.
Oxford senior Beth Hubbard directs “Making the Call” by Jane
Martin. This play concerns a young woman, Elizabeth, who is approached
by a secret service agent with an illicit offer from the president of
the United States. Elizabeth considers what to do while the president
awaits downstairs.
“Sure Thing” by David Ives and directed by Newport, Vermont,
senior Brian Kilday concerns the difficulty that some men and women
face to express themselves. The play begins with stereotypical guy-girl
scenarios that end horribly yet humorously. Kilday says, “It is a
laugh-out loud-comedy that everyone can relate to about the troubles of
making a connection.”
“The Interrogation” by Murphy Guyer, directed by Edmore junior
Meekin Udell, shows a couple meeting in a bar after breaking up from a
serious relationship. Each person learns what the other has been doing
since the relationship. Eventually, they discuss what happens next.
They play explores the struggles and quirks that couples deal with
after a breakup.
“Prelude to Thirty-Five” by Seth Kramer, directed by
Worthington, Ohio, sophomore Emily Bartelt, is a play about a lovers’
quarrel at a train station. Also presented is “Good Neighbors” by John Bartholomew Tucker, directed by Elwell senior Hillary Sea Bard.
Posted: Wed, November 12th, 2008 at 12:23AM
