theater
BY ANNA GRACE
Godspell 2.0
Fowl Play
Marist students offer up Too Many Chickens
B
rian, a straight-laced architect, fi nds
himself going nuts as he tries to
deal with his crazy family. It’s hard
to come home to a mom with an enthusiasm
for fairies and a mad-inventor father who
is attempting to create a chicken vacuum to
ease the fl ow of fowl from pen to truck.
Sound familiar?
Keith Kessler’s new play — which
opens Friday, April 20, at Marist High
School under the direction of Tony Rust —
was written for and about the Willamette
Valley wackos we all know, love and
occasionally are. “It’s a fun play because
the characters are all locally real and
recognizable,” Rust says. “They are the
wacky strange people we meet on a daily
basis in Eugene.”
So how did this fun new script fall into
the hands of a high-school theater troupe?
Local performer, designer, director and
teacher Rust was searching for a spring
show. When you consider the issues of cast
size, good roles, appropriate themes and
language, this becomes no easy task. Then
Rust remembered a reading he’d done of
Kessler’s script and it came to him: “I have
my play!”
World premiering seems to be all the
rage right now in Oregon, with Actors
Cabaret of Eugene and Lord Leebrick
Theatre actively promoting new works, and
Ashland’s Oregon Shakespeare Festival
producing a plethora of new shows this
year. Are there benefi ts to working a brand-
new show with students?
Absolutely, Rust says. “The kids are
open enough to play with it, and point out
any inconsistencies,” he explains.
The author regularly attends rehearsals,
and while Rust jokingly says “it’s nice to
have another adult in the room,” Kessler’s
presence has an even greater impact on the
kids: When students have questions about
character or motivation, “having an actual
answer, or at least a made-up answer on the
spot, is really cool,” says Rust.
Kessler has a long history of working in
schools. “Keith has great rapport with the
students,” Rust adds.
Another plus is what the director calls
“a forgiving audience.” Parents, friends
and teachers make for the very best
audiences in the world, and will be able to
pick up on the fi nest aspects of the script.
So whether you want to support young
actors, new playwrights or simply are
curious about more modern methods for
moving around your farm animals, come
check out Too Many Chickens. ew
Too Many Chickens plays 7:30pm Friday & Saturday,
April 20-27, at Marist High School, 1900 Kingsley Rd.,
686-2234.
The beautiful old Lighthouse church
has been reclaimed as a theater as well
as a sacred space, so what could be more
fi tting than opening with an updated
production of Godspell? New Hope
International’s creative arts director,
Steve Kenny, notes there are several
reasons to be thrilled about the new
venue and the old classic.
“We have an outstanding cast,” Kenny
says, noting that several of the actors
are fresh from a similar production of
Godspell that was mounted in Hawaii.
Along with the young cast, Kenny
says he is excited about tapping the
directorial wisdom of veteran performer
Roxy Ragozzino.
“There is always something new,”
Kenny explains, describing Ragozzino’s
directing style. “She knows the show
inside-out and backwards.”
The original 1971 musical, a folk-rock
expression of the gospel according the
Matthew (with a little help from Luke),
has been updated with a “John Mayer-
esque groove,” Kenny says.
And music is not the only aspect of
the production that’s been revamped.
The New Hope Center Auditorium
recently
underwent
theatrical
renovation, including stage, lighting and
sound improvements.
New Hope International is an
organization emphasizing creative arts
as an integral part of Christian worship,
though according to Kenny: “This is not
church; it’s a solid theatrical production.”
Godspell plays April 20-22 at
New Hope Center Auditorium, 1790
Charnelton St.; info & times at newhope.
edu or 485-1780. — Anna Grace
NEW HOPE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE
PRESENTS
“GODSPELL” is presented through special arrangement with music theatre international (MTI). All authorized performance
materials are also supplied by MTI. 421 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019
Phone: (212) 541-4684 Fax: (212) 397-4684 www.MTIshows.com
WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM
EUGENE WEEKLY APRIL 12, 2012 29