Dixie State College’s theater program is presenting two new plays this semester along with future activities planned for students.
The first play students are performing is Shakespeare’s “Henry V” but with some variations.
Mark Houser, chair of the fine arts department and director of the theater program, said “Henry V” will be an experimental text study including only five actors with Henry being the only character performed. The director selected monologues from the play and combined them.
“The director, Michael Harding, has taken a very experimental approach to that script, so it’ll be a really different kind of Shakespeare experience,” said Brent Hanson, associate dean of fine arts. “It’s going to be a really fascinating kind of a once-in-a-lifetime sort of experience.”
“Henry V” will be shown in the Eccles Fine Arts Center Back Box Theatre. The play runs Jan. 31 and Feb. 1-2 and 5-9 at 7:30 p.m.
The second performance will be Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Gondoliers,” which is an operetta set in Venice. The show will be directed by Varlo Davenport, who also directed “Fiddler on the Roof” in the spring semester of 2012.
Houser said people should look forward to the epic nature of the play due to the large cast of 32 actors.
“We’re excited for these two productions because they’re quite unique, and the designs for them are really incredible,” Hanson said. “And the director’s concepts are really fun, and the students are having a blast.”
“The Gondoliers” will run Feb. 28 and March 1,2, and 5-9 at 7:30 p.m at the Eccles Main Stage.
Not only are theater students going to be performing in two productions, but a select few are attending the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival Regional Conference. This organization sponsors a national acting contest called the Irene Ryan Competition where students are invited for performance and design.
Hanson said evaluators from the organization are invited to the plays to see students perform and nominate them for the award.
“It’s a pretty big deal to be invited to participate in the regional level,” Hanson said.
The selected students will be traveling to California in February to attend the competition.
Tickets for both plays are available at the Cox box office, online at www.dixiestatetickets.com, or by calling 435-652-7800. General admission is $10, but student and faculty admission is only $1. Group discounts are available at $5 for groups of 20 or more. Also, the night before the opening day a free performance is put on for the community and anyone is welcome to attend.
