The glamour of a Hollywood Technicolor musical, a Shakespearean comedy set to a New Orleans beat, and a play centered around a pool of water with a “splash zone” for the audience are three examples of six diverse shows slated for this year’s season for Sterling College Theatre.
“White Christmas,” a stage version of the popular 1950s movie, “Twelfth Night,” a new musical telling of the Shakespearean comedy, and “Metamorphoses,” the contemporary take on a famous Greek epic poem are three of the shows. The others are the tender drama “Anatomy of Gray,” Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Company,” and a new play entitled “Red Velvet,” which will be presented Aug. 26 and 27.
“Variety, challenge, and ambitious are the three words to describe our theatre season this year,” said Artistic Director Sasha Hildebrand. While some college and university theaters produce only two to four shows a year, with only one musical, Sterling College Theatre is presenting six productions – three musicals and three plays.
“It’s very important for our students to have a variety of opportunities and experiences from which to grow. That’s why we undertake so much. Our students and our audiences are the richer for it,” Hildebrand said. “We want our students to be challenged as performers and actors as well as designers and technicians. Plus, it’s important that our audience as well as our students are exposed to a wide range of styles and stories,” she said.
Three of the productions will be presented in Culbertson Auditorium on the Sterling campus. Two will be presented in Upper Wilson Hall, next door to the theater.
“Red Velvet,” the first show of the year, will be staged in the round with audience seated on the stage of Culbertson Auditorium.
When the renowned actor Edmund Kean collapses during a performance of Shakespeare’s “Othello,” London’s Covent Garden theater is left without a star to play the title role. Enter Ira Aldridge — an African American actor who brings with him a raw, honest style of acting never seen before at Covent Garden.
The year is 1833. English people gather in the streets to demand that slavery be outlawed in England’s colonies. Arriving at London’s Covent Garden theater, Aldridge finds the cast of “Othello” divided not only on the issue of slavery, but on whether he is fit to lead the company.
Despite resistance, Aldridge determines to give his best performance. He challenges the company to move away from the melodramatic acting style they are used to and explore realism. Most of the company are willing to follow Aldridge’s direction, but the bigger test is yet to come. The play cannot succeed unless London audiences and critics accept Aldridge and his interpretation of “Othello.”
Torey Wilson of Rural Hall, North Carolina, will both co-direct Red Velvet and play Ira Aldridge for the fulfillment of his senior project as a theater major. Senior Alicia DeHaan from Salina will play the Covent’s lead actress, Ellen Tree. The Covent’s stage manager, Pierre Laport, will be played by senior Dylan Werth of Hays. Sophomore Ezekiel Thompson of Newton will play the actor Charles Kean. Junior Cate Gutteridge from Oklahoma City will play actress Betty Lovell.
Others in the cast include senior Jake Pieplow of Sterling, junior Luke Harding of Sterling, senior Nya Williamson of Wood River, Neb., junior Rachel Thomson of Buhler, junior Keeley Coon of Eureka, and junior Bryson Brownlee of Sterling. Hildebrand is co-directing the show.
“Red Velvet” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 26 and 27. Seating will be limited. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and are available at www.sterling.edu/arts.
Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” is the Homecoming musical for Sterling College and will be produced on Oct. 6 through 9.
The poignant drama “Anatomy of Gray,” which centers on the healing of a small Midwestern town during the 1880s, will be seen Nov. 16 through 18.
Sondheim’s concept musical “Company” will be staged in Upper Wilson Hall on Feb. 10 and 11. It centers on 35-year-old bachelor Bobby and his relationship search.
Playwright Mary Zimmerman’s “Metamorphoses” takes Ovid’s poem and sets it in and around a pool of water and will be seen March 3 through 6. Shakespeare’s comedy “Twelfth Night” will be presented in a new version featuring bright vivid colors and contemporary style music by songwriter/performer Shania Taub. It will be seen in Upper Wilson on April 13 through 15.
The theater season will finish with “An Evening of One-Acts” directed by Sterling theatre students on April 29 in Culbertson.
Advance tickets for each show will be available on the Arts page of the Sterling College website about one month before each production.
