|
MCCC
Theatre students will explore the dark forces of human nature in
their upcoming adaptation of Shakespeare's classic tragedy, "Macbeth,"
at MCCC's Kelsey Theatre. The curtain rises April 18, 19, 25 and
26 at 8 p.m. and April 27 at 2 p.m. Kelsey Theatre is located on
the college's West Windsor Campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road.
Seventeen
of Mercer's most talented Theatre students will draw theatergoers
into a world where "fair is foul, and foul is fair," a
battlefield comprised of the darkest elements of our nature. Emboldened
by Lady Macbeth and the witches' prophecies, Macbeth's obsession
with power leads to menace and murder. As the tale is spun, cast
members will pass signature pieces of Macbeth's and Lady Macbeth's
wardrobe from one actor to the next, as each of them faces his or
her own demons. The realistic fight scenes are directed by the noted
fight choreographer Joseph Travers, managing director of Swordplay,
a New York City-based company, which provides stage combat training
to professional actors.
According to MCCC Theatre Program Coordinator Jody Person, who directs
the play, in the fantasy of this production, nearly all the actors
slip beneath the skin and inhabit the roles of Macbeth and/or Lady
Macbeth at some point in the action. "If the potential for
evil exists in everyone, the characters in the play as well as members
of the audience have the potential to be Macbeth or Lady Macbeth,
if only in our daydreams or nightmares," Person said. "The
action flows from scene to scene with a swiftness that draws us
into Macbeth's internal struggles."
The
cast includes Jennifer Fordyce as MacDuff's Son/Macbeth, Doreen
Griffin as Heccat/Macbeth, David Hamm as Banquo/Macbeth, Keith Harper
as Macduff/Macbeth, James Jaketic as Donalbaine/Lady Macbeth/Macbeth,
Shauri Johnson as Second Witch, Ben Knight as Seyward's Son/Macbeth/Lady
Macbeth, Stephanie Landau as First Witch, Daniel Lownie as Duncan/Doctor/Macbeth,
Keegan McDonald as murderer/Macbeth, Michael Mitchell as Ross/Macbeth,
Shannon O'Connor as Porter/Servant/Seyton, Grace Papadopoulos as
Third Witch, Yiraldi Reyes as Lady Macbeth/Macbeth, Tommy Searl
as murderer/Macbeth/Lady Macbeth, and Alyscia Toscano as Lady Macduff/Lady
Macbeth/GentlewomanKyrus Westcott as Malcome/Macbeth.
The
production crew includes students Shauri Johnson as assistant director,
and Nicole Schulnick and Jill Donchak as stage managers. Faculty
member Bob Terrano, who coordinates the Entertainment Technology
Program, is lighting designer. Kelsey Theatre Artistic Director
M. Kitty Getlik produces the show and Technical Coordinator Kate
Pinner is costume designer.
|
|
|
Front
row, from left, Shannon O'Connor and Michael Mitchell; second row,
from left, James Jaketic, Ben Knight, Tommy Searl, and Kyrus Westcott.
|
