By Dominic Rapposelli
Sports Editor
From Feb. 29 through March 2, theater-goers were able to watch “True West,” a Washington College Department of Theatre and Dance production directed by Dale Daigle and senior Julia Staley. The show was held at Tawes Theater inside the Gibson Center for the Arts.
The play depicted a pair of brothers, portrayed by juniors Sam Steptoe and James Fordi, who wreck havoc while taking care of the home of their mother, portrayed by senior Rae Merson.
Austin, a screenwriter by trade, is challenged by Lee, a drifter, who believes that he can write a realistic western. Lee’s screenplay is bought by a producer named Saul, played by sophomore Jai Basu, which causes a rift between the siblings.
“The role of Austin for ‘True West’ had much more preparation than any other character I’ve ever been cast in. To me, the work did not come as a surprise and genuinely I was happy to take up the role and spend more time focusing on a single character,” Steptoe said.
The play was not only well received by the student body, but also by the cast.
“There aren’t a lot of challenges as a director when you get to work with such a great team. The challenge for me was just making sure that the actors felt confident and comfortable performing such a dense and intense show,” Stanley said.
“I think Sam and James were incredible at making on stage adjustments and playing around with their characters,” sophomore Nick Littleton said.
The actors additionally wanted to take their own liberties with the characters, including several scenes where the featured actors added their own dialogue and actions based on what they believed their characters were experiencing. This included a scene where a piece of toast is snagged off the floor and eaten by Austin as the lights fade to black.
“Austin eating the toast off the floor was so not scripted,” Steptoe said. “Honestly, by that point in the show, Austin is so out of it that it genuinely felt like something he would do, and on show night, I felt there needed to be something nuts at the end of the scene that would give the audience a feel of just how far gone Austin is, so I improvised it.”
The show boasted solid attendance all three nights, with the theater filling up over half of its capacity every night.
“I was happy with the turnout. I love the feeling of watching an audience experience the play for the first time, when you’ve probably seen it 10 times,” Stanley said. “I would love to sell out every night of a show of course, however the turnout for ‘True West’ was great and the audiences were so engaged in the story.”
The creative team for the production included Elm Staff Writer freshman Jessica Kelso as stage manager, Elm staff writer sophomore Ella Kozlowski and sophomore Jenna Harper as assistant stage managers, technical director Josh Jenkins as the scenic designer, sophomore Isabel Bindewald as the sound designer, sophomore Elizabeth Fitzpatrick as the lighting designer, freshman Sparrow Hall as the dramaturg, junior Maddi Mulder as hair and makeup, Elm editor-in-chief senior Liv Barry and sophomore Ella Jendrek as the props supervisors, guest artist Mallory Shear as the fight and intimacy choreographer, and senior Skye Hass as the costume designer.
“Also wanted to say that the [stage management] crew was incredible, through rehearsal process and to performance nights. From perfect scheduling, incisive thoughts and ideas, and somehow managing to clean up the set each night after the chaos ensues,” Steptoe said. “They are so important and such a large reason as for the show going so smoothly.”
The next headlining production for the Department of Theatre and Dance is “The Lightning Thief,” a senior capstone experience from Matthew Brader from April 4 through April 6.
Photo by Dominic Rapposelli
Photo Caption: The set for “True West,” designed and built by technical director Josh Jenkins, depicts an 80s style kitchen.