Ohio Northern University’s Freed Center for the Performing Arts will present three student-directed one-act plays in the new Mathile Lab Theatre from April 24 to 27 at 7:30 p.m., and with matinee shows scheduled for April 26 and 27 at 2 p.m.
Student directors from the ONU Department of Theatre Arts will stage three gems of the American theater that span half a century of playwriting, from William Saroyan's classic drama of the 1940s, Hello out There, to Sam Shepard's 1960s experimental comedy, Chicago, to the contemporary, whimsical Death Comes for a Wedding by Joe Tracz. With each play no longer than a half hour, this is a short evening of theatre packed with variety and compelling storytelling.
Sam Shepard’s “Chicago” is directed by Jeremy D. Martinez, a sophomore theatre arts/theatre major from Palmview, Texas. “Chicago” features a 20-ish man named Stu in a comic and absurdist take on the meaning of life and love. Shepard's stage reality is anything but real: a foray into the bizarre, the comic and the highly imaginative.
The actors in “Chicago” are Jim Scofield, a senior communications arts major from Sugar Land, Texas; Anne Cape, a junior theatre arts/musical theatre major from Naples, Fla.; Sydney Walton, a sophomore theatre arts/musical theatre major from Sunbury, Ohio; Lani Coleman, a freshman theatre arts/musical theatre major from McKees Rocks, Pa.; Ethan Craft, a senior theatre arts/international production major from Sycamore, Ohio; and Martinez.
The second one-act play is a drama by William Saroyan titled “Hello Out There,” which will be directed by Caroline Page, a junior theatre arts/musical theatre major from Birmingham, Ala. Saroyan's moving play is set in a small town jail, and features a down-on-his-luck prisoner accused of rape, and a young girl who works as the jail’s cook, and who befriends him.
The cast of “Hello Out There” is a made up of Zane Sade, a senior theatre arts/musical theatre major from Churubusco, Ind.; Chelsea Kennedy, a junior nursing major from Grand Rapids, Ohio; Jeremy D. Martinez, a sophomore theatre arts/theatre major from Palmview, Texas; Lani Coleman, a freshman theatre arts/musical theatre major from McKees Rocks, Pa.; and Ethan Craft, a senior theatre arts/international production major from Sycamore, Ohio.
The final performance will be Joe Tracz’s “Death Comes For A Wedding,” directed by Amanda Pfister, a junior theatre arts/theatre major from Kendall, N.Y. This is the tale of Beth, a young woman selected by Death to be his bride; of Death himself, hoping for this marriage; and of the Old Woman who councils Beth in her dilemma. The play is a whimsical retelling of the myth of Hades and Persephone.
The cast of “Death Comes For A Wedding” consists of six actors: Tim Swaim, a sophomore theatre arts/musical theatre major from Oregon, Ohio; Sarah Keune, a sophomore theatre arts/theatre major from Perrysburg, Ohio; Molly Moreau, a freshman theatre arts/ musical theatre major from San Diego, Calif.; Alexa Lammers, a sophomore public relations and theatre arts/musical theatre double major from Tipp City, Ohio; Sarah Ohm, a sophomore theatre arts and language arts double major from Albany, Ohio; and Kasy Long, a freshman theatre arts and creative writing double major from Terra Haute, Ind.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors, and $5 for ONU faculty and staff, and 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
