When you walk into the Devine Theater in the Davis Performing Arts Center this week, the first thing you notice is the river in front of the stage. From the 12-foot scaffolding to the huge blue sheets that provide the backdrop, it is clear that this is a major production. As Jesse Ross, a graduate student in the English department, puts it, “there’s another world inside the Davis.”
The Pulitzer-nominated Eurydice, written by MacArthur Genius Grant winner Sarah Ruhle and directed by Associate Professor of Theater and Performance Studies Derek Goldman, is a reworking of the classic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Eurydice shows promise in following in the footsteps of Ruhle’s previous play Clean House, which was a Pulitzer finalist.
Director Derek Goldman says he picked this play because it was “an opportunity to do Sarah Ruhle in D.C., where people haven’t seen this major new American play.” He also loved the script and felt that it was one that applies to the lives of students. “It’s so much about youth and young love, and a lot like the college experience … heightened and yet ephemeral.”
The script attracted many of the actors to the project. Ali Zatta (COL ‘07), who plays Eurydice, says that when she first read the script, “I read it all night. It made me cry the first time I read it through, and I knew I wanted to be a part of it.”
Elyce Henkin (MSB ‘07), the actor who plays “Loud Stone,” adds that “because it is such a new play, none of us has seen it before. The characters build from the ground up … you can build anything you want, with great direction, and no preconceptions.”
There was also the attraction, the actors say, of working with Derek Goldman as well as the Associate Director of the Davis itself. “It can’t be stressed enough how significant Derek is to this play,” Jesse Ross says. “He is a mentor, a friend. Everyone trusts him, and for good reason—he only makes us better.”
Production manager Susan Shay (COL ’00) was living in New York when she was approached about the show. “I interviewed with Derek,” she says, “and seven days later I was here.”
The experience has more than lived up to the expectations of those involved. Karin Abromaitis, a professional choreographer who worked on the production, says this is “one of the most exciting shows” she’s worked on. “There were huge challenges in the design,” says Goldman, “but they were wonderful challenges. That is what this program is about.”
The cast has clearly become close, laughing and teasing each other during their breaks. Clark Young (COL ‘09), who plays Eurydice’s father, also mentioned the cohesiveness of the group.
“Elements of directing, acting, tech, costumes [and] sound allied to become sort of one, to move together.” “With this group of people, everyone gives it their all,” Zatta added.
In addition to providing an opportunity for students to see a major new American work, Eurydice promises to be a technically inventive show. The set, designed by New York set designer Clint Ramos, is incredible, allowing for myriad special effects: a girl dives underwater, guitars fly across the stage, a room is constructed out of string. In the words of Jamieson Baker (SFS ‘08), who plays “Little Stone,” the play “has stretched the conception of what is possible in the Gonda Theater, technically and artistically.
“The show goes where no show has gone before, expanding the idea of what is possible with theater on campus,” he said.
