Spring season commences

Department of Theatre Arts prepares to premiere upcoming performances

“South Pacific,” a production of Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein’s, will hit the stage Feb. 20 as the opening act in the spring semester for the Liberty University Department of Theatre Arts.

According to the department’s website and The Broadway Musical Home website, the musical is based on James Michener’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “Tales of the South Pacific,” published in 1947. Set on an island in the South Pacific during World War II, the plot focuses on two parallel love stories threatened by prejudice and war. The musical score features songs such as “Some Enchanted Evening,” “Younger Than Springtime,” “There is Nothing Like a Dame,” “Bali Ha’I” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair.”

Director Neal Brasher, an assistant professor in the Department of Theatre Arts, chose the show for its classic songs.

“It’s a classic musical from the golden age of musical theatre with a compelling story,” Brasher said.

“It has never been done at Liberty before, nor has it been done in Lynchburg for about 17 years,” Brasher said.

The next show will be “Everyman,” directed by Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts Chris Nelson.

According to Nelson, although anonymously drafted, the play is one of the oldest and most well-known morality tales written.

“It speaks to the moral condition of man,” Nelson said. “It’s about a man that’s told it’s basically his time to die, he’s handed his book of accounts and told he needs to get right with God.”

According to Nelson, the play is based in the Catholic tradition of ars moriendi, which were instructions for people during the Middle Ages on how to die well.

Nelson believes the religious theme is something that will draw audiences to the show.

“As a faith-based community, staying focused on Christ is something we should be able to resonate with,” Nelson said.

Another element that Nelson hopes will draw audiences is the fact that this production is movement-conceived. Nelson estimates that 98 percent of the show is done without words. Inspired by a Cirque du Soleil special he watched on PBS last semester, Nelson wondered if he could use elements of modern art to recreate the story.

“If people are expecting the full text of ‘Everyman,’ they’re not going to have it in verbal form,” Nelson said. “They will have it in another language. I hope what will resonate is that between movement — forms of dance and other elements, such as various forms of multimedia and cinematic arts, shadowing, song and dialogue — the emotional life in the story will still be told in a way that resonates within our culture today.”

The production will run March 19-22. Nelson encouraged the midnight performance March 20 as an approved late-night activity and tickets are $5.

The next show will be “The Secret Garden,” presented by the Alluvion Stage Company. Based on the classic 1911 novel by Francis Hodgson Burnett, the musical adaptation tells the story of an 11-year-old orphan who returns to England from India to live with her reclusive uncle and his son. According to the theatre department’s website, Mary Lennox discovers a magic garden with “dreamers,” which are spirits that guide her through her new life.

Linda Nell Cooper, chair of the theatre arts department and director of the show, hopes audiences will resonate with the show’s theme of
overcoming brokenness.

“Just because someone is broken in one moment of his or her life doesn’t mean they remain broken,” Cooper said. “A person’s life can come out of the ashes through nurturing, rebirth and regrowth. No matter what may have happened in your life in the past, (it) is in the past. You can grow a whole new part of your life out of that, something that can be beautiful and blossom like roses.”

The show will run April 17-May 2.

The season will close with the Summer Shakespeare production of “King Lear.”

According to the theatre department’s website, the show focuses on King Lear’s decision to step down from the throne, his decision to divide his kingdom among his three daughters and the consequences that ensue.

Director Andy Geffken, an assistant professor in the theatre arts department, said although current students are involved, the show is a way for department faculty, staff and alumni to challenge themselves to do a show that would not necessarily be performed on the Tower Theater main stage.

According to Geffken, this is the third year the department has done a Summer Shakespeare production, performing it in a different location on campus each time. This year, “Lear” will take place in the Tower Theater because other buildings on campus are not suitable for some of the technical elements in the show. However, the show will take place in a different format than a traditional show in the theater space.

“The audience will be on the stage and they will actually be looking out into the house,” Geffken said. “We’ll be able to use the front of the stage and the house where the audience would normally be as our stage area. It’s the reverse perspective that will be fun and different for the audience.”

The production will run May 21-27. Tickets are $10. More information about the theatre department can be found at liberty.edu/theatre. More information about the Alluvion Stage Company can be found at alluvionstage.com.

Maurer is a feature reporter.