UNews - Faculty of Fine Arts

TheatreXtra delves into social rebellion, loss of innocence

trevor.kenney — Tue, 21 Jan 2014 17:40:16 +0000

Girls! Girls! Girls!, written by Greg MacArthur, is an adaptation based on the tragic losses of Reena Virk and the students of Columbine. The play explores the human face of social rebellion as it is centered on the lives of young teenage girls. Taking place after a gymnastics competition, MacArthur focuses on the brutal revenge sought by the girl who lost.

Shelby Carlson (foreground), with Cait McFarland, Kelsea Lind and Clark Mustard (behind), bring an adaptation of the Columbine school shooting to life on the TheatreXtra stage.

Jay Northcott, a third-year BFA Dramatic arts major, was introduced to this play by professor Richie Wilcox. After working with the play in his directing fundamentals class, Northcott knew he needed to direct it. Northcott is excited to work on this production as it is a way to develop his skills further as an artist.

“If you’re not intrigued in the first five minutes, I did something wrong,” he says.

Girls! Girls! Girls! breaks down and reconstructs the idea of childhood loss of innocence. The play deals with a mature subject matter, focusing on the impact that violence has on today’s youth.

"Violence is not an isolated action that threatens societal norms but rather the very condition by which characters understand and define themselves,” says MacArthur.

Inspired by the events of the Columbine shootings, the play approaches not only the lives of the victims but the unrecognizable struggles of the killers.

TheatreXtra’s third production, Girls! Girls! Girls!, plays Jan. 23-25 at 8 p.m. nightly, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Jan. 25 in the David Spinks Theatre.

Tickets are available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office (Monday to Friday 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., or by calling 403-329-2616). Individual tickets are $12 regular, $10 seniors/alumni and $8 students.

Purchase regular tickets online at uleth.ca/tickets.

Flavours of ancient Greece to tantalize audiences of Exia

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 22:40:28 +0000

Sink your teeth into one of the juiciest dramas of the Drama Main Stage season. Spicy, sensual and tantalizing, Exia, written by Governor General Literary Award nominee and Theatre and Dramatic Arts faculty, Meg Braem, promises to satisfy all audience appetites.

Exia, by Meg Braem, plays at 8 p.m. nightly in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre, Nov. 19-23.

Playing Nov. 19-23 in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre at 8 p.m. nightly, this premier production transports patrons to a sumptuous scene in Ancient Greece. Chrysothemis and Elektra have returned home to discover their father, King Agamemnon, murdered by their anorexic and withdrawn mother. Through the power and fragrance of her gastronomical talents, Chrysothemis attempts to bring her family back together.

“Exia is about murder and revenge, but it’s also about young love. And although it’s based in the tradition of Ancient Greece, is very contemporary – very sensual and touching,” says Gail Hanrahan, director.

Shortlisted for the 2013 Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama for her play, Blood: A Scientific Romance, playwright Meg Braem gives credit to the students in her Canadian Plays and Development class two years ago for helping develop Exia.

“This play is truly built out of the university, and incorporates the voices of our students,” she says. “It is about youthful characters and incorporates the themes and beauty of young love. It was through the work done in class with our students that we captured that spirit in the script.”

Exia, derived from the word orexis, or appetite, promises to satiate audiences with a feast promising to enthrall, excite and thrill.

Tickets are available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office (Monday to Friday, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., 403-329-2616). Tickets are priced at $18 regular, $15 senior, $12 students and are also available for purchase online: uleth.ca/tickets.

SEERious Sideshow truly an indulgent spectacle

trevor.kenney — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 20:47:12 +0000

A unique, entertaining and thought-provoking experience awaits those who choose to attend the Thursday, Oct. 24 SEERious Sideshow and Dr. Soanes' Closing Reception, featuring M.E.D.I.U.M. in the Atrium of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Centre for the Arts.

M.E.D.I.U.M. (Metaphysical Explorations, Divinations and Investigations Utilizing Magic) is a trio of artist-mystics comprised of magician Frater Tham, Trailer Park Psychic Char Latan and Eastern European psychic Madame Symona, who mark the closing of the Odditorium with the erection of three circus tents in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Hall Atrium space adjacent to the gallery.

Their performances are a collision of shyster carnival and contemporary art practice, complete with séances, sin eating, captured faeries in bell jars, and prophetic readings of Turkish coffee grounds.

While seeking out futures determined by ancient numerology, or peering deeply into a scrying mirror, visitors may hear the distant ringing of a spirit bell, announcing the arrival of presences unseen. Amidst this presentation of superstition, spiritualism and the paranormal, visitors are left to debate the veracity of what they’re being shown; is this a sly, art-insider joke? Are M.E.D.I.U.M.’s resident mystics pulling one over on the visitor, and if so, would that make it any less fun? How seriously are participants meant to receive a fortune that is delivered via country-western ballad?

Each spooky interaction with whispered clairvoyance or otherworldly ectoplasm is countered by sleight of hand tricks and framed portraits of the Sacred Heart of Elvis Presley. In the brief moment of initial encounter, where excitement, inquisition, amusement and goosebumps meet, M.E.D.I.U.M. holds sway over the visitor – the spectacle contains indulgent play and surprises that are not often found in “serious” contemporary art spaces.

Whether the experience is held as genuine or faked, M.E.D.I.U.M.’s careful navigation of the line between legitimacy and hoax gives visitors the agency to arrive at their own conclusions.

The closing reception runs from 4 to 6 p.m. and is open to the public.

UNews - Faculty of Fine Arts

TheatreXtra delves into social rebellion, loss of innocence

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Flavours of ancient Greece to tantalize audiences of Exia

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SEERious Sideshow truly an indulgent spectacle

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