 | Spring/Summer 2005 |
Features: SVSU Launches Summer Theatre Series With Three Plays
The Saginaw Valley State University Theatre department will hold its first ever Summer Studio Season, a collection of three plays to be performed throughout the summer months. The season will kick off with "Waiting for Godot," followed by "The Star-Spangled Girl" and "Someone Who'll Watch Over Me."
Janet E. Rubin, SVSU professor of theatre, sees the series as a way to keep the Theatre department involved in SVSU and the community.
"We're really excited to be doing this," she said. "It will be nice to be able to involve both the community and the campus in the performing arts throughout the summer."
"Waiting for Godot," written by Samuel Beckett, will be directed by Steve Erickson, SVSU professor of theatre. Performances are scheduled for Tuesday, June 21 through Thursday, June 23, and again on July 7. All shows will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Lillian R. Zahnow Amphitheatre (pictured right).
"'Godot' is a good fit for the amphitheatre," Rubin said, citing the play's outdoor setting.
In the event of inclement weather, the play will be performed in the Studio Theatre, also known as the Black Box Theatre.
"Godot" portrays the dogged resilience of man's spirit in the face of little hope. Two bums fill their days as best they can as they wait for Godot – a personage who will explain their insignificance, or put an end to it.
Rubin will direct "The Star-Spangled Girl," written by Neil Simon. The show will be performed in the Studio Theatre Tuesday, July 12 through Thursday, July 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Rubin says the play is a fast-moving, hilarious comedy that deals with two earnest young men struggling to put out a "protest" magazine, while the all-American girl who moves in next door manages to send both of them into a romantic tailspin.
In the final show, SVSU assistant professor of theatre Ric Roberts will direct "Someone Who'll Watch Over Me," written by Frank McGuinness. The play will be shown Tuesday, August 9 through Thursday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. in the Studio Theatre.
The 1992 drama is about three men – an Englishman, an Irishman, and an American – who are held hostage by a nameless Muslim terrorist organization in Beirut, Lebanon. It focuses on the men struggling to understand the causes and consequences of their incarceration. According to Roberts, the play was written in an earlier stage of the ongoing struggles between Arabs and Westerners.
Tickets for all performances are $5 for seniors and students and $7 general admission and available through the SVSU Box Office, located in Groening Commons, or by calling (989) 964-4261. From Midland, dial 695-5325, ext. 4261.