Students go from convicts to thespians in British play
The Utah State theater department is presenting the play “Our Country’s Good,” a Tony award-nominated play written by British playwright, Timberlake Wertenbaker, Feb. 18 at the Morgan Theater. Adrianne Moore, an associate director of theater at Utah State for 10 years and is the artistic director at Utah State. She attended the first production of the play in 1988 in London as an intern.
She said, “I’ve wanted to direct this play ever since I saw it for the first time. I was delighted when the other professors and students accepted my proposal.” She said the professors strive to choose a wide variety of works to do for the year, from Shakespeare, to musicals, to historical works.
According to Moore, the play depicts the British convicts and correction officers that were sent to the first penal colony created in Australia, who put on a production of a play called “The Recruiting Officer.” The whole story is based on a book, written by Thomas Keneally, called “The Playmaker.”
There are some fictional parts of the play, but all the characters depicted within it are based on actual convicts or soldiers that were assigned to the first penal colony and rehearsed together to perform a play. Wertenbaker was actually able to read the journals of the First Fleet members in order to portray them accurately.
Moore said, “Lieutenant Ralph Clark actually did direct a production of the recruiting officer in the 1780s. The play is very interesting on a historical level.”
Susan Ballif, associate director and a senior majoring in theater arts, said, “It’s been a really good experience. It’s not the play I wanted to do at first, but I’ve really come to enjoy the humor and the messages that are layered into the play.”
Lance Rasmussen, a sophomore majoring in theater, is playing the part of Lieutenant Ralph Clark who directs the play within “Our Country’s Good” that the convicts rehearse for. He said, “It’s interesting putting it all together. We, as actors, are having to deal with a lot of concepts that are very foreign to us. It’s very eye opening to put yourself in another person’s place, and feel exactly what it is they went through.”
Ballif said, “There are a lot of great themes that are presented in the play. One of my favorites is the that it shows that people aren’t born a certain way, you can teach them to be different.” The convicts represented are always saying that if given a chance, they can be better, even though the officers are convinced that they can’t change and crime is in their nature.
Moore said that all the actors are double cast. In one scene an actor will play a convict, in the next they will play an officer. She said, “This allows them to realize both sides of the situation, and put themselves in the place of both parties.”
Rasmussen said, “The thing I love about this play is that it’s all about theater, and the arts specifically being more than just entertainment. It helps the convicts regain their humanity, even though they’re being treated like nothing.”
Moore said that the department gives a lot of great opportunities to the students to grow and learn in each production they put on. Auditions are open to any member of the community, and all students are invited to try out. But the program presents a chance to let students design the set, costumes, makeup, and lighting of the show.
Rufus Zaejodaeus, a sophomore majoring in theater with an emphasis in set and costume design, was asked to design the set for the show. He said, “Every theater is different, and must fit the specific needs of director and the play. There is a very delicate balance in set design in which you need to support the actors and what happens on stage, and of course it must be safe.”
He described the set of the show as being “atmospheric and abstract. Rather than depicting and actual landscape, it’s more of an emotional landscape.” He said he worked hard to create a set that gives the audience and actors a sense of depth in the performance because this play includes a lot of human cruelty and brutality, and is about emerging out of that through the arts.
Ballif said, “I like this job. There are moments that are hard, but I have a great director I get to observe and learn from, and I have learned a lot in this process.”
She said the production team for the show has been preparing for the show since last October. They cast the show, then presented a lot of the designs, talked about sketches, explored the characters before they started blocking, and figured out what they were expecting from each other. After all of this they were able to start blocking the show.
She explained that blocking is where they decide how the actors move from point A to point B on the actual stage, but they leave it to the actors to figure out how to make that look organic. She said, “I’ve been really impressed with all the research they’ve done on their characters, since they were real people a couple hundred years ago. I’ve seen them grown and express themselves and become better actors throughout the rehearsal of this production.”
Moore said, “I’ve really enjoyed working with the students here at Utah State, because they are so open, and will really try anything. I never get any hesitation from them to try new ideas. I can tell they’re all very hard working, and value their education.”
Rasmussen said, “In the last while I’ve had some amazing opportunities here, and I can definitely be proud to be a part of this department. It’s exciting to see where the Caine College of the Arts is going, because there is a huge push to become so much better right now.”
Moore said, “It’s very funny, and very moving. The arts have a really humanizing affect on people, and it’s great to see the story told of how these convicts have this really extraordinary, uplifting experience. The premise of the story is really delightful.”
“Our Country’s Good” will play in the Morgan Theater at 7:30, and will be playing the 17th through the 19th, and the 23rd through the 26th.
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