Do you sleep with your teddy bear? Do you think University girls are hot? Or better yet, do you think whales are sexy?
Maybe, maybe not. But, regardless of whether or not you fit any of the above descriptions, you surely possess certain qualities that separate you from your fellow students. Every member of the University community is unique, every Wahoo has a voice. That's the message Spectrum Theatre will bring to the Old Cabell stage in this weekend's production of "Voices of the Class."
This marks the second consecutive year the group has created a production from selected admissions essays of the incoming first-year class. Led by the marketing genius of the self-proclaimed Artistic Director and Minister of Public Disinformation Andrew Starner, members of Spectrum are parading around grounds this week with shirts proclaiming, "Oops, we did it again."
The Admissions Office presented student artists with 50 applications, which the cast and crew read independently over the summer.
"We sat down when we returned to school and discussed which pieces we believed would adapt well to the stage," said fourth-year cast member Steven Shepard, co-founder of Spectrum. The students built a script and worked out their adaptation under the guidance of directors Greg Thomas and Myxolydia Tyler.
Last fall, "Voices of the Class" was a creative experiment; now, it's an established success. Several of last year's shows sold out, and students were turned away at the door. As anyone who saw the first production can attest, Spectrum has landed on an idea that inspires a great deal of response from the audience.
"It will make you laugh, it will make you dance, it will make you cry," ensures cast member Shoaib Afridi, "it's the full 'spectrum' of human emotion."
"One minute you'll be laughing at a sketch on ignorant high school textbooks, and the next you'll be in Communist Romania, watching a street protest through the eyes of an 8 year old," Shepard added. "There's something in this show for everyone."
"Voices" can be a particular source of pride for first year students. Regardless of whether your essay is included in the script, the production provides a collective sense of accomplishment.
Ultimately, the power of the production originates from the words of its authors, the incoming first year class.
"I really want to see this tradition continue in the future," Shepard said.
One can't help but believe it will. This project has a secure future because it remains dynamic. Hamlet will always perish, and Stanley Kowalski will never get in touch with his sensitive side. The drama of "Voices" will never be the same.
Second year actress Sarah Drew claims the company adhered much more closely to the actual text of the essays this time around. "Last year's show was very entertaining, and this year's is as well, but I think this second show is also more thought provoking," Drew added. "It is truer to the students' voices, which is good."
It's more than good. In fact, the only negative effect "Voices" may have on the audience member is a sense of inferiority at one's own essay. The Admissions Office received over 14,000 applications last year and flagged these particular essays as being exceptional or unique. "It's not voices of the rejected," quipped fourth-year Michael Finnegan who saw last year's production, "it's Voices of the Class."
Regardless of how this performance affects you, rest assured it will affect you somehow. If you can get a ticket, that is. Performances are tonight and tomorrow night at 8:00, with a 2:30 matinee on Sunday.
"This show is hype, yo," boasts Voices star Ronnie Washington. "Steven Shepard has more dumps than a truck, truck, truck. I emphasize that third truck."
Thomas Jefferson could not be reached for comment.
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