During the last weekend of Women’s History Month, the University of Tampa’s department of Speech, Theatre and Dance presented Six Women With Brain Death or Expiring Minds Want To Know at Falk Theatre.
Through a series of songs, dances and sketches, this musical comedy took a look at life and pop culture from the feminine perspective.
The all-female cast consisted of UT students Allie Abate, Gabi Guinta, Anna Morris, Mollie Posnik, Elisha Sayed and Kristen Walker.
The performance was comprised of 12 different scenes that explored TV soap operas, “genuine press-on nails,” Barbie and Ken’s secret fantasy life, what “is” and what “is not” feminine and much more.
For Morris, a junior and musical theatre major, Six Women With Brain Death can be best described as “a musical on social commentary.”
“Each scene has its own unique social commentary on how people are desensitized to the media,” Morris said.
One of the most unforgettable scenes features Morris portraying the role of “Rambi,” a cross between Bambi and Rambo. Throughout the scene, the audience is taken on a detour through the forest, where Rambi can be found lecturing her fellow furry friends about the cruelty of life while rejecting Disney’s notion of fairy tale endings.
Although Morris has contributed her talents to several different theatre productions, since her freshman year, she describes her current role to be “one of the best experiences I have had so far at UT.”
Under the direction of UT drama professor Karla Hartley, Morris, along with her five other castmates, rehearsed for this production for the past month and a half.
“We have worked so hard and it’s been very awesome. The audience’s reactions have been great,” Morris said.
The “Rambi” scene was certainly a crowd pleaser, noted for its satire and costume designs. But for some audience members, like junior John Mill Sap, the overall content of the show was most interesting.
As a theatre student, Sap has been able to attend a countless number of UT productions but described Six Women With Brain Death as a unique show that he’s “never really seen before.”
“Not a whole lot of people are willing to say what was said in the show and really push the envelope which was really, really refreshing for me,” Sap said.
The discourse throughout the show involves different characters that are in some way affected by the media. Each role is symbolic of how the media is capable of influencing one’s own thoughts and shaping personal opinions.
For junior and musical theatre student Elisah Sayed, being a part of Six Women With Brain Death proved to be not only a fun experience but also served as an opportunity to deliver a timely message.
“I think the show is about how the media can influence people to believe what they hear and let that form how they think and who they are as a person,” Sayed said. “I think that’s very relevant to society today with social media like Facebook and Instagram.”
In portraying several different characters affected by the media, Sayed hopes she was able to convey to audience members the importance of being a freethinker in today’s society.
“I think people can really watch [the show] and apply [it] to themselves. It gives them a chance to think outside of the box and not be afraid to stand out,” Sayed said.
Kai Miller can be reached at kai.miller@spartans.ut.edu