by dick kerekes dickkerekes@yahoo.com
The world premiere of an original play Issac, I Am will be on stage for one more weekend at the Studio Theatre on the campus of Jacksonville University. The final performance is Sunday, October 22 at 3 pm.
Opportunities to see new plays are rare in this area, and this one is unique.
Isaac, I Am, was selected from over 300 plays submitted nationally to the Helford playwriting contest, that offered a $l0,000 prize by Jacksonville University alumnus Bruce Helford. Mr. Helford is very involved in California in the creative process behind various sitcoms including The Drew Cary Show and Roseanne.
JU Theatre Professor Deborah Jordan read ALL 300 scripts (be kind to her, that is a tough job having to read the good, the bad and the ugly) She and her staff selected three finalists and Mr. Helford made the final selection.
The winning playwright Mary Steelsmith flew in from LA for the opening. The trip, no doubt, gave her inspiration for another play since she had over 2 hours in plane delays and the airlines lost her luggage. (Start writing Mary!)
This maybe the first play that brought the characters in chat rooms on the Internet to live theater. I will assume that most of our readers use or have used a computer and the Internet, although many of you may not have visited any type of a chat room.
Chat rooms are an offshoot of electronic bulletin boards, which are off shoots of traditional bulletin boards. At first, people posted messages, ads, and queries. With electronic bulletin boards, you could post responses to a posting. In chat rooms, postings and responses can be done in real time.
The settings in the Studio Theatre are a bare stage with some box like cubicles at the back of the stage. Two large wooden boxes are the only “furniture” and are moved in and out and used in many ways.
Our central character is a young, attractive woman named Angela. Renee Freeman is a sophomore and is superb in this role as she establishes online relationships.
She becomes involved with a young teenager, Josh (Jason Dietz) and his 15-year-old sister, Katie. Their obsessive father, Isaac (hence the title of the play), is well played by Anthony Shaw. She also becomes involved with Ben, a wacky and very funny weirdo, performed by Josh Cohen. Angela violates one of the chat room’s unofficial rules and meets him in person.
Characters tend to interconnect as they gain entrance to the chat room’s buddy list. Isaac has another female friend, Roseanne (Darlene Stratton), who appears to have problems of her own (or does she?).
In addition five members of the cast act as a Chorus and they move in and out of scenes, playing various people who would visit chat rooms for intervals to “speak “ their piece. The members of the Chorus are Raphael Christian, Dax Dyer, Tyler Graham, Shara Lewis and Laura Mauldin and they sometimes make us laugh and other times almost tremble with fear when they threaten violence.
As I watched this play unfold to a dramatic and thought- provoking ending, I occasionally closed my eyes and just listened. Why? You have to reinforce the fact that most of the spoken words are TEXT MESSAGES. I therefore just tried to image seeing what was being said as if it were on a computer screen.
In the opening scene, Dax Dyer played a very frantic character, and I just could not really understand what he was saying and I interpreted that as a person who enters a chat room and is not very good at spelling or typing.
Mary Steelsmith’s play has an important message. Beware of what you find in chat rooms, and on the Internet IT MAY NOT BE THE TRUTH!
We have all read about the horror stories about predators and children in chat rooms, and as well have probably read some feel good stories of wonderful romances getting their start here.
Chat rooms can be valuable and the different types available stagger the imagination. The topics covered are range from sports, to cooking and on the more serious side, discussing illnesses and treatments and learning and practicing languages. Yes, the list goes on and on.
Kudos to Lighting Designer Forest Hinman for keeping a mostly blank stage exciting. Also to Director Deborah Jordan and cast for bringing such a cyberspace subject to life.
When you go to see the show, you will receive an excellent program that will help you understand the playwright’s intent. .
Call 256-7374 for information and reservations. If you are a chat room fan, you need to see this play. Evening performances are at 7:30 PM, get there early as seats are on a first come first- served basis.
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