When you think of wonderfully performed plays at Rensselaer, this year’s Players shows are probably the first to come to mind. This year though, students in Professor Paulina Shur’s Theatrical Performance class made a bid to be added to that elite group of enjoyable plays in their performances in RPI’s first Playwrights’ Festival on Friday and Monday nights in Moth-er’s Wine Emporium.
The idea for the festival came from the Playwriting and Production class taught by Shur in the spring of 2001. Nineteen short plays were selected from the 80 written in that class to be performed by this semester’s Theatrical Performance class. Because the festival was very well organized and immensely enjoyable, it was disappointing that only a few students turned out to see it.
My favorite performances from the show were the plays Some Well Deserved Rest, Two Gentlemen of Jerusalem, and Bridal Shop.
Some Well Deserved Rest brilliantly portrayed the intricracies involved in psychological therapy. Dr. Edwards, played by Matthew Hitchens, was having a bad day. His wife had cheated on him with his best friend Robert (William Woodrow) and the patient he was having an affair with had tried to commit suicide for the third time in recent weeks. “Bored people tend to create problems for themselves, and I am perpetually bored,” said Hitchens. I most enjoyed the clever use of soliloquies by Hitchens to pull the viewer into the scene. The play eventually settled on the fact that a psychologist’s life is complex and continually requires “rest for the weary.”
Two Gentleman of Jerusalem put a humorous spin on the Joseph and Mary stories. The actors questioned the fact that Mary had become pregnant by a holy ghost without sex, finally settling on the conclusion that maybe she was impregnated by God, since they lived in biblical times. “This is the biblical age. A screwed-up pregnancy should be expected once in awhile,” said James Signor, the actor who played Joseph.
In Bob’s and Zelda’s Bridal Shop, the bride, played by Jennifer Celli, and the groom, played by Kevin Gotta, were visiting a bridal store to purchase clothing for their upcoming wedding. After repeatedly starting arguments over every single detail about the wedding, they mutually decided that they couldn’t agree on anything and shouldn’t marry. “You have to hate each other. Let’s just leave,” said Celli and Gotta.
Overall the Playwright’s Festival was very enjoyable, and I look forward to seeing next year’s performances. It would be nice if students would consider putting on more shows like the festival in Mother’s, as the space mostly sits empty on weekdays.
