By: Kiera McGuire
On Sunday, March 3, I had the honor of attending the New Works Festival in the Shoolroy Black Box Theatre. The two plays I saw, “Permission to Live?” and “To Write a Play” were not only very emotionally immersive, but very well written and performed. The entire cast and crew for both productions did an incredible job setting up the scenes and keeping the plays running smoothly.
The first play of the night, “Permission to Live?,” details a petty officer, Everett Dorvante (Oliver Regan ’27) and his journey on a naval cargo ship working for the navigator’s wife, Anamantha Thorley (Chrissa Baldy ’27). While being forced to clean the ship, Everett discovers a stowaway on board — and it happens to be someone he knows, a long-lost best friend, Tilden Vismora (Doug Slovenkay ’27). While the two friends catch up on each other’s lives, Everett learns that Tilden is engaged and planning to marry a suspicious woman, Madeleine Dunstan (Katie Koeppl ’26). This is also where the audience learns that Everett was assigned female at birth, and originally known as Evelynn.
In another area on the ship, Thorley comforts Madeleine Dunstan, who is not only engaged to Tilden but is posing as a prostitute to gain sympathy (and a ride) from Thorley. One thing leads to another, and Thorley discovers Tilden hidden away on board. Dunstan, having everyone in the same room for the first time, reveals her true intention: to arrest Tilden for a serious crime. However, the crime isn’t stowing away on board a naval ship but for supposedly kidnapping the young Evelynn years before.
Little do both Dunstan and Thorley know that they are actually searching for Everett, who is right next to them. Desperate to keep Everett’s identity safe, Tilden obliges to the arrest, but Everett refuses to let his friend get hurt for something he didn’t do. Everett proceeds to give a heartfelt and meaningful speech about how he wants to be seen for who he truly is, and that he deserves to live the life he’s always wanted.
This play was a staged reading, with the stage directions read through a narrator, Amelia Guianen ’27. This setup was very engaging to the audience and implored them to imagine the sets via description. The writer, Abby Rahz ’25, and director, Patrick Estell ’24, did an incredible job coaching the actors on how to convey lots of emotion in their dialogue. After the play, I saw multiple people wiping their eyes from how emotional the play made them. It was such an incredible experience.
The last play of the night was “To Write a Play,” written by Ethan Juhasz ’27 and directed by Shannon Dunning ’27. The play focused on Quinn, a man who is tasked with writing a play for a scholarship writing contest. As he attempts to write the play, he receives calls from his parent (Ada Wagner ’27), who encourages Quinn to take care of himself (and call back). Quinn also has a friend by his side — Mark (Hannah Reinicke ’26). Mark propels the story by inviting Jessie (Sabrina Clinger ’27), Quinn’s love interest, to help with the play. Unfortunately, the pressures of the deadline get to Quinn, who locks himself away from Mark, stops calling his parent and gets mad at Jessie, tainting the newly-formed relationship. The play’s theme comes from the parent’s monologue, who tells Quinn that writing should be something he does for fun and enjoyment, not something that causes stress. Upon sitting on this information, Quinn turns his life around — including calling his parent and hanging out with Jessie again.
Quinn perfectly embodies the stress and pressure of a college student who is juggling family struggles, love, friendships and the daunting deadlines that come with college. The play’s theme is one that everyone can relate to — you should do what makes you happy and what you love for your own enjoyment above anything else. The one-setting play captured my attention from the beginning and provided lots of emotional turmoil, from laughter to tears.
Overall, these plays were incredible in both their storytelling and layout. For “Permission to Live?,” the lack of props exemplified the experience as it allowed the audience to immerse themselves in the acting. For “To Write a Play,” the one-scene setting displayed the dichotomy between doing what you love for yourself versus doing it for others. These plays were remarkable, and I’m so glad I got the chance to see them!