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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 2000)
Theater prepares to make audience laugh ■‘She Stoops to Conquer’ will open the University Theatre’s season this weekend By Monica Hande Oregon Daily Emerald It’s been awhile since the University Theatre has tried to generate laughs from a Robinson Theatre audi ence. But that’s about to change beginning this week end. The University Theatre will open its new season Friday with Oliver Goldsmith’s “She Stoops to Con quer,” a late-18th-century comedy, and director Jack Watson is ready to make audiences laugh. “It’s not a play that’s going to teach anyone a moral lesson,” said Watson, the head of the theater arts de partment. “It’s pure slap-stick comedy.” Watson said Goldsmith created the play because he was determined to bring comedy back to the stage. The story, which takes place during a single night, centers on two rich, single men, Young Marlow and George Hastings. Comedy prevails in their attempts to court two young women, Kate Hardcastle and Con stance Neville. A practical joke by Kate’s stepbrother, Tony Lump kin, results in a case of mistaken identity that sets off a chain of humorous events. “The whole play is about tricks,” said Bekki Barn hart, who plays Kate. “It’s all about mistaken identi ties.” Although Barnhart, a senior theater arts major, has acted in several University Theatre productions, “She Stoops to Conquer” is her first experience in a comedy, as is the case for Brian Henderson, who plays Hast ings. “I don’t really consider myself a funny guy by na ture,” said Henderson, a senior philosophy major, so this play has provided a challenge for him. Regardless, both actors apparently demonstrated the qualities Watson sought during casting. “In the final process, I was looking for two specific elements,” Watson said, “a grasp of the ‘style’ of the period — a certain elegance and ease of manner—and a willingness to take some jk chances and be creative.” And creativity was definitely some thing the whole cast and crew brought JH v\ to the production, Watson said. A. Watson “has given us free reign to ■WBfff play with the script,” Henderson * jJA said, referring mainly to improvi- jA w~ Turn to Theater, page 6B JjaAlw Courtesy of University Theatre Young Mar low (Quinn Mattfeld) attempts rt Kate Hardcastle LCC uses authenticity to build a better ‘Mousetrap’ ■The long-running Agatha Christie play will feature a set and accents faithful to past productions By Mason West Oregon Daily Emerald Lane Community College is hop ing to make a killing with its fall play, “The Mousetrap.” The play, by famous mystery writer Dame Agatha Christie, will have audi ences asking “whodunit” starting Friday. The director, LCC theater arts Catherine Kendall Emerald (above) Mollie Ralston (Rachel Beck) and Miss Casewell (Laurel Sturgis) interrogate Mrs. Boyle (Dandy Pond) while (right) Sergeant Trotter (Chalan Moon) questions Mr. Paravicini (Patrick Torelle). professor Eileen Kearney, decided to produce this show at LCC after remembering her first time seeing the show in London, where it is still running. One of the longest running plays ever, “The Mouse trap” has been performed in Lon don for the last 48 years. “It took off and never stopped,” Kearney said. “Then it became kind of a cult thing.” The play is a textbook murder mystery. The nine characters all en ter the stage fitting the physical de scription of a murderer who the au dience has heard about from a radio broadcast. From the beginning, everyone is a suspect, and that is exactly what Kearney wants. As a form of audience participa tion, there will be a vote box at in termission where audience mem bers can guess who they think the murderer is. The prize for a right answer is a two-for-one coupon to LCC’s spring play, “You Can’t Take it With You.” Adding to the mystery of the characters is the fact that the major ity of their real-life counterparts are new to the LCC stage. Kearney put off casting until the start of the new school year purposely to see what new people had to offer. “Some directors like to cast a fall show over the summer,” Kearney said. “But I didn’t want to, because at LCC we get a fresh, new batch of Turn to ‘Mousetrap,’ page 6B lasty Thai Kitchen RESTAURANT & CATERING Authentic Thai Cuisine • Ready-to-eook entrees and catering available • Dine-ln or To-Go Ihursdav-Mondav 4-9 3443 Hilyard (Imidejiffy Market) V Voted Best Breakfast in Town! By Eugene Weekly Open Daily 7am-3pm Breakfast Served 7am-3pm Lunch Served Monday-Friday 11am-3pm KEYSTONE CAFF ♦ Redeem for a FREE BEVERAGE of your choice ♦ West 5th at Lawrence • 342-2075
