The Northwestern Oklahoma State University speech/theatre majors will present two, one-act plays Feb. 16-17 at 7 p.m. and Feb. 18 at 2 p.m. in Herod Hall Auditorium. Doors open 30 minutes before each showing, and admission costs are $2 with a student ID, $4 for faculty and staff, and $5 general admission.
Mickey Jordan, Iowa Park, Texas, senior, and Tori Hurley, Sheffield, Iowa, junior, will be directing the productions on the same stage.
Jordan’s play, “The Mice Have Been Drinking Again” by Cleve Haubold, is a short comedy set in 1967. A young happy couple in a small apartment in San Francisco experience comical mishaps with their scatter-brained roommate.
Hurley’s play, “Goodbye to the Clown” by Ernest Kinoy, is a short play about a 9-year-old girl who has trouble distinguishing between imagination and reality. She blames her behavior on a “clown” and imaginary playmate.
The pair are getting this opportunity to direct their own shows a little earlier than their peers who came before them in the program, all because of suggestions made by those graduating the program during exit interviews.
During the interviews, Kimberly Weast, professor of theatre arts, and Tamara Brown, assistant professor of speech and interim chair of the communication department, took the suggestions and found the additional shows could provide valuable experiences to the students prior to them producing their senior capstone shows.
Weast believes giving the students more opportunities to direct and design will build on the students’ confidence and skills as they go through the production process. She also believes students learning to lead their peers now will benefit them in the future.
Jordan said this is an excellent opportunity for him to direct and get hands-on experience for what it is going to be like later in his career.
“I love the creative process, and I love how four months ago this was a script in professor Weast’s office,” Jordan said. “I laughed all the way through it, and I’m so glad to put this show on. I’m really looking forward to it.”
The two student directors began preparations for their productions in early September of last year.
Hurley explained there were numerous aspects of getting their shows ready that can’t always be seen by the audience who attends the production. From selecting the play and the actors, holding a number of rehearsals and gathering stage props to creating the set and finding or sewing costumes, it all comes before the actual show is ever presented to the public.
“It’s rewarding to see all the work and effort you’ve put in come to life on stage,” Hurley said. “With all the actors cast, and all the sets you’ve designed, it’s really amazing.”
Cast members for “Goodbye to the Clown” include: Tiffany Willson, Conway Springs, Kansas, freshman, early childhood education; Shaden Foresman, Laverne sophomore, speech/theatre; Taylor Morris, Lancaster, California, senior, mass communication; Arthur Bohlman, Hooker graduate student; and Jordan.
Cast members for “The Mice Have Been Drinking again” include: Nicholas Wygle, Noble junior, biology; Crosby Dunbar, Owasso freshman, vocal performance; Katherine Blair, Waynoka freshman, music/vocal; Abbie Tillman, Elk City senior, biology; Zach Frische, Northwestern alumnus; Ken Kelsey, instructor of history and fine arts; and Hurley.
For more information about the Northwestern theatre program, contact Weast at kkweast@nwosu.edu or (580) 327-8462.