Photo by: Charles Ng
What do you get when you throw together a tiny, stuffy theater, a group of talented students and a trio of plays?
You get the 2004 Senior Theatre Projects. The plays ran April 29 and 30.
The play “Gabriel,” by senior H.F. Bushman and directed by Abrian Suazo and Bert Bushman, was the first of the trio. “Gabriel” centers on a homeless man who becomes acquainted with those around him. Gabriel, played by Colin Day, believes himself to be an angel. While attempting to find his way back to God, he is visited by an angel. The red lighting in this piece, which was used to symbolize the light of heaven, gave the actress playing the angel both a sense of authority and a sinister air.
“Gabriel” is an attempt to get the audience thinking about the pros and cons of religion and the true meaning of right and wrong. Though Gabriel is the sympathetic protagonist, some of his actions do not fit the “good guy” image. However, the audience is willing to forgive him because he is trying to do what he thinks is best and help others.
The second piece was “Nipple Jesus,” adapted for the stage by alumnus Todd Webster. The play is based on a short story by Nick Hornby, and was directed by senior Lynette Fredregill. “Nipple Jesus” is the first-person narrative of a man chosen to guard a controversial piece of artwork. The art in question is a mosaic of Jesus, made of nipples cut from pornographic magazines. The play follows the main character, Dave, played by Adam Odekirk, who struggles with his feelings about the piece.
Like “Gabriel,” “Nipple Jesus” is a thought-provoking play. As the audience members follow Dave through his crisis of conscience, they begin to question their own feelings about what is obscene and what is not. Dave’s soul searching allows us to realize that controversial works are the best kind, as they force us to think.
The final piece, “The Blue Room,” was the only published play performed in this year’s projects. The play is written by Courtney Barone and directed by senior Abrien Suazo. “The Blue Room” was unlike the other plays in a few respects. The lighting and costumes all followed a single color scheme: blue, of course. Secondly, the play was only 10 minutes long, and involved only two characters. “The Blue Room” tells the story of a sailor married to a woman who loves the water more than she loves him. We only see her through his memories, and her quiet musings on how much water means to her seem to affirm his memories.
This play was not a social commentary like the others, but rather questioned the idea of whether someone is always the way you remember them. The sailor feels guilty because he thinks that he has trapped his wife in a “blue room” in his memory.
Overall, this year’s Senior Theatre Projects were a heady bunch.
As the audience left the small box-theater in the basement of the Margery Reed, discussions abounded and everyone seemed to have been touched in at least some way.
