By Danielle Barnes | Echo
This weekend, two plays hit Taylor's campus: one filled with humor and the other reaching deep into the clash of personality and ideology.
Seniors Leah Murphy and Morgan Turner are each directing a show for their play directing class project. In this class, students spent the semester analyzing plays and choosing one to direct.
"We just read a whole bunch of plays, kind of narrowing it down to which ones we wanted to direct," Murphy said. "We presented three plays to the class and, through discussion, we chose one."
Murphy is directing "The Boys Next Door," and Turner "Mass Appeal," with the help of the Managing and Artistic Director of Taylor Theatre Tracy Manning.
Both directors hope their audiences will be open to the central themes of their plays. "The Boys Next Door" centers on those with mental illnesses, while "Mass Appeal" explores the ideas of Catholicism and forgiveness in the clergy.
"The Boys Next Door" follows the story of four men with various mental disabilities and consists of brief moments from their lives.
"I knew that I wanted to do something funny and uplifting," said Murphy. "I really wanted the experience of working with strong male leads, and when I read the play I just fell in love with it."
Most of the directing centers on character development. With a cast of 12 student actors, Murphy focused on reading each person individually to see how to pull the character out of them.
"We did a lot of exercises and games that make them think about aspects of their character that they don't already have themselves," she said. "It's all about them discovering it on their own."
On the other hand, "Mass Appeal" follows the lives of only two characters: a complacent older Catholic priest, played by senior Taylor Eaton, and an idealistic young seminary student, played by junior Sean Sele. Within the story, each uses his relationship with the congregation to heal personal scars.
"This plays demonstrates a lot of spiritual truth, what that means to us and how we live that out day-to-day," Turner said.
Turner was excited to apply what she learned in the classroom to her role as director.
"We take a class, but there's not much application until it's time to direct a play," Turner said. "It was exciting to see how well I take what I'm learning in a classroom setting and applying it to the rehearsal hall."
The plays are free to all. "The Boys Next Door" runs Friday, April 1 at 9 p.m. and Saturday, April 2 at 3 p.m. in Mitchell Theatre. "Mass Appeal" runs Friday, April 1 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 3 at 2 p.m. in the Black Box, Rupp 101.
