Ohio Northern University’s Freed Center for the Performing Arts will present three student-directed one-act plays in the Stambaugh Studio Theatre from March 29 to 31 at 7:30 p.m. and March 31 and April 1 at 2 p.m.
The event kicks off with a shortened version of Charles Mee’s “Hotel Cassiopeia,” directed by Morgan Greene, a sophomore theatre arts/theatre major from Garfield Heights, Ohio. “Hotel Cassiopeia” follows American collage artist Joseph Cornell, whose life and style of art inspire the theme of the play. Using Cornell’s diaries, letters, and taste in music and movies, Mee based the characters in the play on people Cornell knew, observed or dreamed about.
The actors in “Hotel Cassiopeia” are Allison Becker, a freshman theatre arts/theatre major from Dallas, Texas; Jennifer Barnaba, a freshman theatre arts/musical theatre major from Spring Valley, Ohio; Lindsey DelBello, a senior communication arts major from Williamsville, N.Y.; Evan Lachance, a freshman theatre arts/musical theatre major from Dayton, Ohio; Hayley Reynolds, a junior theatre arts/musical theatre major from Sylvania, Ohio; and Drew Roby, a senior communication arts major from Bluffton, Ohio.
The second performance will be a shortened one-act version of David Hare’s “The Permanent Way,” directed by Robert Lynn, a senior theatre arts/theatre major from Oregon, Ohio. This British political play recounts, through the first-hand accounts of civilians, the company manager and British government ministers, what happened in England when the British government decided to privatize the country’s railways. Using the exact words from interviews Hare conducted, the play details what took place after four train collisions in the 1990s and 2000s.
The cast of “The Permanent Way” consists of six actors: Whitney Dottery, a freshman music major from West Chester, Ohio; Jeremy Martinez, a sophomore theatre arts/theatre major from Palmview, Texas; Caroline Page, a freshman theatre arts/ musical theatre major from Birmingham, Ala.; Cory Peeples, a senior nursing major from Montpelier, Ohio; Diego Sandino, a senior journalism major from Attica, Ohio; and Layne Schneider, a junior communication arts major from Dayton, Ohio.
The final one-act play is a comedy by Jane Willis, “Men Without Dates,” which will be directed by Alex McGregor, a senior communication arts major from Nashua, Iowa. “Men Without Dates” tells the story of three men searching for the correct path to peace as they handle the difficulties in their lives together.
The cast of “Men Without Dates” is a made up of Michael Burke, a junior communication arts major from North Canton, Ohio; Sean Varga, a junior communication arts major from Olmsted Falls, Ohio; and Zane Sade, a sophomore theatre arts/musical theatre major from Churubusco, Ind.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and non-ONU students, and $9 for children. Tickets are on sale now. The Freed Center box office is open Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Phone orders are accepted with American Express, MasterCard, VISA or Discover by calling 419-772-1900. Tickets also are available online at www.freedcenter.com
