The University of Tampa’s Departments of Speech, Theatre and Dance is putting on a performance of the Pulitzer Prize winning production Our Town, a recently revived play. The play was written by Thornton Wilder and first produced in 1938.
The New York Times recently said, “Our Town has escaped the formal barrier of the modern theatre into the quintessence of acting, thought and speculation … A beautifully evocative play … A hauntingly beautiful play …”
According to About.com, the play explores the lives of people living in Grover’s Corners, N.H.
Director Michael Staczar, the associate professor of theatre at UT, told The Minaret that he chose to direct this play as part of the department’s cycle of plays, so that students can have exposure to all the types of genres.He also described the plot line, which revolves around the lives of George Gibb and Emily Webb, along with other characters. The townspeople’s everyday lives are shown — the good and the bad.
The cast consists of eighteen UT students, who will play all of the various characters throughout the play.
KC Shaffer, the production’s stage manager, described the rehearsal atmosphere as that of a large extended family. “Since we began this process, we’ve been through a lot as a cast, both on stage and off. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried. We’re a weird, dysfunctional family, but we have a lot of fun…”
As shown by the titles of the acts, the play is divided into each of life’s aspects: act one: “Daily Life”; act two: “Love/Marriage”; and act three: “Death/Loss.”
Our Town will play in Falk Theater on Thursday, April 14 to Saturday, April 16 at 8 p.m. and again, for a Sunday matinée, on April 17 at 2 p.m.
Admission is free for UT students, faculty and staff with a UT identification. General admission is $10 and non-UT students are admitted for $5.
For more information, contact the Department of Speech, Theatre and Dance at 813-257-3987 or e-mail the director at mstaczar@ut.edu.
Go see this iconic drama while it is playing at UT and help support your fellow Spartans.
Laurel Sanchez can be reached at laurel.sanchez1@gmail.com.
I feel like this article could’ve had a little bit more reporting. For a Pulitzer prize winning play, it doesn’t seem necessary to quote “about.com” when talking about the plot. It takes 2 hours to read a play, or someone involved in the production could’ve been asked… Some quotes from actors would’ve been cool too! But that’s just me. Not bad, just some suggestions.