Student Theater Takes Hold of Columbia Campus

This fall, you don’t have to make the trek to Midtown, or
farther, to get your fill of excellent theater productions. In the
upcoming weeks, beginning as soon as this Thursday, you will have
the opportunity to see a wide variety of shows without ever having
to leave campus. Columbia students have been hard at work since the
first weeks of September, putting together numerous offerings to
suit anyone’s taste, from original musicals, to cult
classics, to little-known comedies. Following is a round-up of
major Columbia productions.

Wake Her Up

Presented by NOMADS

Nov. 12 & 13, 10 p.m.

Roone Arledge Auditorium

This completely new and original, full-length musical features
music and lyrics by Janine McGuire, BC ’05. It tells the
timeless story of Psyche, the beautiful, feisty mortal princess who
is far more concerned with leading a passionate, altruistic life
than choosing among her many suitors—that is, until she wins
the heart of Eros, the mighty god of love and the original
“player.” This romance occurs much to the dismay of
Aphrodite, Eros’s mother and a fabulous diva of a goddess who
can’t bear the thought of anyone, especially a mortal,
outdoing her beauty and stealing her son. Wake Her Up also
features a colorful supporting cast of both gods and mortals and a
dynamite pop-rock score full of lusty ballads and upbeat anthems,
and played by a live band. There are sex jokes, catfights,
romances, and godly adventures—all packed into a two-hour
extravaganza. This fun, modern twist on a classic myth is
definitely worth checking out.

The Rocky Horror Show

Presented by Columbia Musical Theatre Society

Oct. 28 at 8 p.m. and 11:59 p.m., Oct. 29 at 11:59 p.m., Oct.
30 at 9 p.m.

Roone Arledge Auditorium

The fall season kicks off this weekend when the ultimate cult
classic transvestite-musical comes to Columbia, just in time for
Halloween. Ted Malawer, CC ’06, directs the tale of sex,
spooks, and science fiction, which features both a scantily-clad
cast and a live rock band. Feel free to dig out those fishnets and
red lipstick and join in on the fun. Even if you’re heading
out of town for the long weekend, you can catch one of two
performances on Thursday evening. But, a word of caution: the
musical will certainly be one of the most risqué shows to
hit campus in recent years, so if Grandma’s in town, leave
her behind.

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui

Presented by Barnard College Musical Theater

Dec. 2-4, times TBA

Roone Arledge Auditorium

Jazz, pinstripes, Hitler, and cauliflower? They come together
like never before in this historical farce, an epic-sized gangster
tale set in 1930s Chicago. Through a set of tragically absurd and
hilarious circumstances, which all parallel actual events, Arturo
Ui exposes a city so desperate for security that its citizens
become afraid to question their government leaders, the validity of
the law, and ultimately, the removal of their rights by a group of
ruthless gangsters, eerily similar to the Nazi party. In the style
of author Bertolt Brecht, director Brandon Woolf, CC ’05,
plans to incorporate other artistic mediums into the show,
including a live jazz band that will perform onstage and energetic
dance numbers, which will comment on the preceding scenes. Such
techniques should help turn a somewhat somber plot into an amusing
and thought-provoking production.

The Coronation Voyage

Presented by Columbia Musical Theater Society

November 5-7

Black Box Theater

On this journey, a fallen Mafia leader and his two sons try to
start life anew, a shady diplomat holds the key to securing their
anonymity and new life, a wife haunted by the nightmares of World
War II both clings to the past and feebly reaches out toward the
future. The different portraits of these characters all struggle
with and against each other and themselves, and make for a
fascinating ocean voyage where the final destination is not
altogether certain. The production is a New York City premiere, and
both cast and crew are thrilled to be involved in the debút
of what the director, Rose Ginsberg, BC ’06, called, “a
dramatic, beautiful, and engaging play.” For stage manager,
Daniel Robles, CC ’06, the fact that this is a premiere is
not the only first. In his first time as a stage manager, he said
he is lucky to have “such wonderful actors” and
“an amazing, poignant script.” Both Robles and Ginsberg
have high hopes for the final product, and hope it will attract
students. Said Robles, “it’s a thriller, a love story,
a tragedy, and a satire all blended together, and there’s a
gangster in it! What more could anyone want?”

The One-Acts Extravaganza Vol. V

Presented by King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe

Nov. 18 and 19

Roone Arledge Auditorium in Lerner Hall

King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe bursts onto the theater
scene this fall with two unique productions: The One-Acts
Extravaganza Vol. V and Macbeth. The extravaganza is a
collection of four independently directed one-act plays that
together form an eclectic revue and includes 27 Wagons Full of
Cotton by Tennessee Williams (directed by Henry Wiener, CC
’06), Muzeeka (directed by Pitr Straight, CC ‘07),
Guernica (directed by Kevin Connell, CC ’05), and Cadenza
(written and directed by Peter Mende-Siedlecki, CC ’07, and
Lars Dabney, CC ’07). But preparing so many works has not
been easy. “Working to prepare four different plays
simultaneously is quite an adventure,” said KCST President
Josh Hadro, CC ’05. The presentation of the four works might
be helped along by some celebrity power. “We’ve also
recently been in contact with some big personalities who have
agreed to host the one-acts for us,” Hadro said.
“I’m not at liberty to divulge the names of the hosts
just yet, but I will say that we’re very excited to have them
come in for this event.”

Macbeth

Presented by King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe

Nov. 11 and 12 at 8 p.m., Nov. 13 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., Nov.
14 at 2 p.m.

Lerner Black Box Theater

Macbeth is a self-proclaimed darkly intense production of a
darkly intense play in the “bare-bard” style; minimal
production values, big-time text emphasis, only eight actors in 30
roles. This is a technique Director Lauren Mancia, CC ’05,
said is necessary due to the nature of the play.
“[Macbeth] presents the ultimate challenge to the
artist involved in the production,” she said. “Can the
actor, the director, and the designer go as deeply into the
darkness of this play as the text requires?” She added that
it is a struggle to “understand and internalize the shadows
in this play in order to meaningfully transmit them to an
audience.” But despite the difficulty of the play, Mancia
said that it is also a joy to watch and produce. “Macbeth is
one of Shakespeare’s most poignantly terrifying
plays-—it’s awesomely, sadistically entertaining to
watch.” Fight Choreographer Michael Dreyfus, CC ’08,
agreed, although he contends that it might be interesting in a
different way. “Our cast is totally way hot. And they have
broadswords,” he said.

The Skriker

Presented by CUPAL

Dec. 9 at 8 p.m., Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m., Dec. 11 at 1
p.m.

Lerner Black Box Theater

CUPAL’s special project this year is a sinister play about
a character from English folklore who is both a shape-shifter and a
death augury on a quest for love and vengeance in modern London.
The piece is packed with other-worldly creatures such as the
Kelpie, Rawheadandbloodybones, The Green Lady, and Black Dog, which
are unleashed from the underworld and run rampant throughout the
countryside. The fantastic subject-matter has created some
interesting problems for the cast. “The show contains some
very challenging elements,” said Director Elissa Goetschius,
CC ’06. “We have to work out how people are going to do
things like speak and have toads fall out of their mouths.”
Goetschius said that a strong cast, lead by Kate Berthold, CC
’06, has made dealing with these challenges easier. “We
have an incredibly talented and resourceful production team and an
amazing cast, so I’m sure we’ll figure things out by
December.” The cast is equally enthusiastic about the
production. “I read The Skriker four times in one day
when Elissa gave me a copy, just picking through the crusty mess of
words and trying to figure out what the damn thing is about,”
Berthold said. “I’m still not entirely sure what the
play is about, but I do know that it is my new favorite piece of
writing.”

The Happy Prince

Presented by Barnard Theater Department

Nov. 18 at 6 p.m., Nov. 19 and 20 at 8 p.m.

Minor Latham Playhouse

This tale, written by Oscar Wilde, depicts the story of a statue
of gold that feels empathy for the poor, and persuades a swallow to
strip away the gold and riches from its image in order to aid them.
This open-ended story line allows a great deal of freedom for
interpretation and innovation, and Barnard’s production has
done just that. Vivid color paintings, papier mâché
puppets, and a chorus of puppeteers combine to create a new spin on
Wilde’s tale. According to director Amy Trompetter, the
puppets will “range in volume, dimension and
magnitude,” allowing the production to “challenge the
essence of scale.” One of the strong points of the production
will be choreography by David Neumann. Trompetter said that,
“Neumann’s dance will highlight his acclaimed use of
testing the boundaries of movement and the layering of dance
disciplines.” Together, Neumann’s input and the unique
nature of the staging, should provide audiences with a different
sort of theater experience.