10/12/2021
Written By: Brian Cunningham
NCCC Theatre returns this Fall after being on hiatus for the last year, due to Covid-19 protocols, with the performance of 4, 1 Act comedic plays. Most of the short plays pertain to the acting industry, and provide many levels of comedic satire. When asked about the show, the Director and Professor of the “Theatre Production’’ class that makes up most of the student actors and crew, Jack Hunter, said, “I was asked by someone in the Administration when I was told I’d be directing to “Please do something funny. We need it after all we’ve gone through in the last year and a half or so”. So we are doing 4 short comedies“. Hunter ensures that “… For those people who are classic theatre enthusiasts, don’t worry. We will make fun of Noel Coward, William Shakespeare and Samuel Beckett.” These comedic shorts consist of a portion of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, a parody of the plays “Private Lives”, “Hamlet” and “Checkmate.”
Many of the students in the casts of the production are also involved in the show’s costume design, the marketing, the lighting and sound design, as well as in the stage management. These are all elements of the class that correspond with the show’s production. Abby Poczciwinski, a Fine Arts major here at NCCC has been working very hard to help coordinate costumes for the actors in the 4 shorts. “Designing costumes for these one-acts is super fun !” said Poczciwinski. “I’ve never designed costumes before, and I’m grateful for the opportunity because it’s something I’ve always wanted to try. Contributing to design elements of a production gives me a broader perspective of all the creative work that goes into it”.
Stage Manager, Amanda Sprung has been here at NCCC since before the Pandemic and has seen what Theatre was like then versus what it is like now. “I’m very excited for this semester’s production. We have continued working in and out of the theatre throughout the entire pandemic so we are all extremely thrilled to finally be sharing our hard work with the rest of our school and our community. As stage manager, I have the honor of watching everyone work hard to grow and improve through every rehearsal. I just wish everyone knew how passionate and talented everyone in our theatre program is. Even though we haven’t had a public performance since before covid, we’ve been here the entire time working our butts off and can’t wait to finally open our doors to you once again”.
Students can usually be found rehearsing on Tuesday, Thursday nights and Friday afternoons. These comedic shorts are safe for younger audiences and families, and the general public is encouraged to come out and support the hard working actors and crew.