University of Northern Iowa - Old Gold Yearbook (Cedar Falls, IA)

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Unique Play Depicts Youth and Aging Mr. Rich (Tim Walden), who is in love with Angel (Leann Donovan), sings her a love song. T JL he musical production of Celebraton by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt opened the season for UNI's Lyric Theatre. Director Bill Ferrara decided to update the 1960's script by including a unique set design and punk costumes. Michael Boudewyns portrayed the Orphan, one of four main characters, who falls in love with Angel (Leann Donovan). Struggling to grow up. Orphan meets Mr. Rich (Tim Walden) who teaches him a lesson about aging. The theme, which dealt with the aging process and lost youth, was subtly presented to the audience with the help of Potemkin, the narrator, played by Bill O'Brien. Modernizing Celebration without losing its meaning proved to be challenging for the cast and crew. We didn’t want to depict a specific time period, stated costume designer Jeanne Batridge. We used punk style to update the production, allow- ing the audience to relate better to it. Utilizing things in stock. Batridge and Ferrara combined the different elements of hair, clothing and makeup to develop an androgenous Figure, which served as the basic look for the cast members. However, the four main characters more closely resembled individual humans. While each chorus member was unique, I used many decorative details that aided in unifying the cast.' ex- plained Batridge. One unique feature of the production was the extended stage, pit and ramps. It required a great deal of skill and prac- tice in order for cast members to perform various dances and acrobatic feats in the limited space. The extended stage brought the actors within close range of the seats and increas- ed the audience s sense of participation. I especially enjoyed working on the set, remarked Boudewyns, The closer con- tact with the audience was really interesting. — Tami Moore 17

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A Fun Wager Turns Life Threatening T M he Wager by Mark Medoff. depicting the problems in the marriage of two graduate students, was this year's annual Bertha Martian Scholarship production and was presented in the Black Box Theater. Each year the funds raised from the scholarship pro- duction are awarded to a student pursuing a career in theater arts. Ultimately. the play is about sharing and trust, revealed Director Ken Wessel. The wager, one of sexual conquest, soon becomes a fascinating, perverse competition which pulls a mar- riage apart and eventually becomes life threatening. The play results in self discovery and the revelation of personal truth for each of the characters. The wager that counts is the one which wages the unprotected vulnerable self with a trusting, caring part- ner. stated Wessel. My favorite thing in the entire play is the black humor. The playwright forces you to laugh and ridicule things that you nor- mally wouldn’t find amusing, observed Kim VerSteeg. She played the role of Honor Stevens, the only woman in a cast of four. VerSteeg was constantly aware of being the only woman on stage. I believe that it was the result of the script, she noted. VerSteeg felt that the playwright s stereotyped treatment of Honor and the problems that she faced in the play served to em phasize the fact that she was the sole female character. This caused some special problems for VerSteeg. Having the dressing room to myself was really strange. she remarked. She believed that having other people around would have kept her from getting nervous. Chris Kennedy, a theater major, designed the set. You really have to understand the meaning of a play before designing its set. The point is presented to the audience subtly through the scenery. My interpretation of The Wager deals with the impor tance of communication. he explained. Unlike any of the other productions, the scholarship production runs consecutively for ten nights. Although the attendance varied with smaller crowds at the beginning of the week, the cast felt that playing to both large and small houses was a useful ex- perience. They also believed that performing every night kept the material fresh and aided in the continuity of the characters. — Tami Moore Hoping to add one more female to his list of female conquests. Ward (L. Michael Scovel) seduces Honor Stevens (Kim Versteeg). Outwitting Ron Stevens (Sean Whitesell). Leeds (Steve Sickles) returns Ron s threats on his life. Perfect prototypes of the odd couple are roommates Leeds (Steve Sickles) and Ward (L. Michael Scovel) Ward (L. Michael Scovel) and Leeds (Steve Sickles) test Ron Stevens (Sean Whitesell) to see how much fun he can take as Honor Stevens (Kim Versteeg) looks on sympatheticly. c.t Col 18 TV 'ttMjn