Kevin Murray, Interim Director
We get used to wishing everyone a Happy New Year, but for those of us in academia, January marks the midpoint of our work.
We have an exciting line-up of productions and special visits by guest artists coming up in this second half of the season. Four compelling plays, two staged readings, and two musical events will be offered this Spring. First up, we will present Deborah Brevoort’s The Women of Lockerbie at the end of February in TheaterSpace, directed by student Em German. Truthfully, I have wanted to produce this play at George Mason ever since it first appeared almost 15 years ago. Set in Lockerbie, Scotland, seven years after the terrorist attack on Pan Am Flight 103 rained carnage on the town, an American mother and father arrive from New Jersey in an effort to retrieve their son’s remains and belongings. Poetic, cathartic, and beautifully expressed through a style reminiscent of Greek tragedy, this play examines grief, acceptance, and injustice, while giving rise to the capacity for hope.
I am especially excited to announce that playwright Deborah Brevoort will attend and participate in a post-performance talk-back on Friday, February 28. She will hold a special class session earlier in the day to talk about her inspiration and creative process for bringing this important story to life. Details will be shared with Friends of Theater members as we approach the date.
Men On Boats by contemporary playwright Jaclyn Backhaus and directed by faculty member Mimsi Janis follows at the end of March in the Harris Theater. Flipping gender, historical, and theatrical conventions, the play follows the true(ish) story of the 1869 exploration of the Colorado River led by a one-armed captain and a crew of loyal volunteers. Expect uncharted waters!
Mason Fringe, offering creative approaches to storytelling with minimal technical production elements, ends our season in late April with two plays in repertory – The Last Days of Judas Iscariot by Stephen Adly Guirgis, and The Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni. The first, directed by student Tyler Shores, is set during a purgatorial trial of Judas, and poses questions that are still debated today. The second, steeped in Italian Commedia dell-Arte traditions and directed by faculty member David Gaines, offers zany plots, lost love, mistaken identity, and lots of mix-ups. Be sure to see both!
For musical theater fans, we offer two events. The Mason Cabaret celebrates The Great American Songbook in the Harris Theater for three performances on January 31 and February 1, with an encore performance at the Hylton Performing Arts Center on February 7. On May 1, we offer two concert presentations of Spring Awakening by Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik in the Concert Hall. Both these musical offerings are directed by James and Erin Gardiner, with Joe Walsh accompanying.
Supporting our musical theater students will be two stellar Broadway legends, Susan Egan (Belle of Beauty and the Beast) and Lisa Vroman (Christine of Phantom of the Opera), who will offer vocal workshops to our students. Once again, details will be forthcoming for our Friends of Theater.
I encourage you to learn more about our shows, purchase tickets, check out staged readings, and mark your calendars by visiting our website.
And, Happy New (Mid-) Year!
Kevin Murray
Interim Director
School of Theater