New Voices showcases student one-act plays
The annual production
features three original
student-written plays
by Steven Neuman
Freelance Reporter
Seeing a play at the University
Theatre's Pocket Playhouse is sort of
like digging
through
bins at a
thrift store.
A measly
few dollars
can unearth either a gem of delight
or a total disaster.
New Voices, an annual theater pro
duction comprised of student's origi
nal one-act plays, displays the full
spectaim of student-playwright po
tential — the good, the bad, and the
sublime. All three productions utilize
the same seven performers in differ
ent roles. While they sometimes fail in
one piece, on the whole, they eventu
ally prove themselves as excellent tal
ents in at least one of die others.
The first play, "Need" by L. Maxmil
lian McCall, is by far the weakest en
trant of die bunch. It centers around
the ambiguous relationship between
roommates Cole, (played smartly by
Andrew I fill, and Michelle (in a weak
er performance by Margie Kment. Mc
Call's writing thrusts the audience
into a vaguely apocalyptic world
where the two experience a sense of
sexual urgency that forces the charac
ters to take their relationship to the
THEATER
REVIEW
next obvious step.
The two spend the remainder of
the play prodding insecurities while
circling each other emotionally like
boxers in the ring. Kment does an
admirable job but her anger feels
forced and her movements feel
overtly staged. Furthermore, the sex
ual tensions brought on by disaster
come across as intensely cliche.
"Between the Lines" by Dinae E.
1 lorne rings truer. It explores the no
tion that the most interesting aspect
of passing conversation is not what
is said, but what is thought. Al
though the play is focused around
the chance meeting of two nameless
college students, the comic timing of
their respective alter-egos, played by
Teresa Koberstein and Eric Dodson
is where the characters really inter
act. Both sound off on their neurotic
foibles and bring sparkle to what
could easily be an intriguing or oth
erwise dry, dramatic experience.
The third play, "Talking to
Strangers," by Matt Chorpenning is a
real treat. If Woody Allen was in col
lege today, he would be writing mate
rial like this. The piece scrutinizes the
intense process of asking a stranger
out on a date, or as a stumbling
"Mark" and "Emily" deem it — "a
conversation." The two become fa
miliar with each other through hilari
ously awkward silences.
Koberstein and Dodson exude
real chemistry as the pair of reluc
tant lovers, and Chorpenning's self
effacing dialogue (one quickly gets
the sense that "Mark" is a thinly
The cast of New Voices performs three student-written plays today and Saturday at 5 p.m. in the Pocket Playhouse.
> Courtesy
veiled version of the author) is a per
fect fit for the two. Natalie Jansson
and Michael Koopman turn in a
sharp renditions of the cynical best
friends, and their timing meshes
beautifully with the overall light
hearted tone. Kment redeems herself
from "Need" as the brilliantly ob
noxious barista that will be eerily fa
miliar to any cafe patron.
New Voices runs tonight and Satur
day night, starting at 5 p.m. There is
no late seating. Tickets are $3 at the
door at the Pocket Playhouse, located
102 Villard Hall.
Steven Neuman is a Freelance Reporter
for the Emerald.
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