For students looking for a chance to take a break from studying for finals, the Mustard and Cheese Drama Society, the department of theatre and students in the Theater 144 class will present two one-act plays this weekend.
The performances will include “I Can’t Imagine Tomorrow” by Tennessee Williams and “Wanda’s Visit” by Christopher Durang.
Han Yu, ’17, the director of “I Can’t Imagine Tomorrow,” wrote in an email that the play is about a man and woman who are each other’s only friends, and are stuck in a rut and do the same things day after day. The story explores their inability to communicate with the outside world and their fear of change.
“What speaks to me about this play is the mutual dependence and isolation the characters are facing,” Yu wrote. “Tennessee Williams wrote this play after his partner died. He felt he had no one to talk to. People are experiencing the same alienation and solitude in their lives.”
Caraline Jeffrey, ’17, the director of “Wanda’s Visit,” said the play is a comedy that tells the story of a couple who are falling out of love, and what happens when a crazy, high school ex-girlfriend shows up and turns their world upside down.
“It’s gong to be a great night of theater because the two plays are very different, but compliment each other very nicely,” she said.
Jeffrey said the one-acts are an annual event presented in the spring as the final project of Theater 144 classes. She said each student director chooses a play and casts student actors. Auditions took place in March.
Auditions are open to the entire campus because the one-act plays are less of a time commitment, and they appeal to a wider range of actors.
“We were overwhelmed by the talent we saw, and it made casting our plays so hard,” Jeffrey said.
Carine Leslie, ’17, an actor in “Wanda’s Visit,” said it has been a great experience being able to be a part of a production and working with an undergraduate student as a director.
“Both plays definitely have the ability to make you think,” said Cole Magura, ’19, an actor in “Wanda’s Visit.” “But the best part about putting the two together, for me, is the difference between the drama and sadness of the first play and the comedy and lightheartedness of the second.”
Performances are free in the Fowler Black Box Theater in Zoellner Arts Center. They are back-to-back Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. There will also be a showing Sunday at 2 p.m.
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