SDA Region 11: Day 2

That's a wrap! The curtain has fallen on the final performance at this year's SDA Region 11 Festival. Here's a recap of the 2 plays from this afternoon.

TRIFLES by Susan Glaspell - I vaguely remember this play from a feminist theater course I took back in university, but I had never seen it, so it was nice to finally see it in action. Walter Murray's visual production of this play was particularly strong. I have a fondness for prairie settings, and this play is set in a small farmhouse, so I appreciated the attention to detail in every aspect of the set/costumes/props. They also used levels, as well as angles, very well. The performances were very subtle, which worked nicely in a poetic play such as this. In this case, less was more.

GLORIA MUNDI by Patricia Brow - This asylum drama was oddly similar to the first play of the afternoon, at least in theme, and also in pacing. This one was all about the performances, as the settings were kept to a very bare minimum. The actors made a lot of creative choices, leaving the audience guessing as to which (if any) of the characters have retained their sanity. I wish I was the adjudicator, if only to ask why one of the actors wore color, while the others were dressed in black and white. It was a subtle choice, but definitely a choice, and I would love to have known the thought process behind it. Whatever the reason, it was oddly effective, even if I can't quite put my finger on why. Or maybe it was a happy accident...perhaps I'll never know. What I do know is that the play started a lively dialogue among the students around me, which is exactly what theater is supposed to do.

Now the adjudicator has the tough job of narrowing the cast and crew lists down to a select few that will receive awards. When I'm adjudicating, I love the process of workshopping the plays with each group, but I do not envy the responsibility of assigning numerical value to each performance. Adjudicator Russ Ramsden certainly has many tough decisions to make, but whatever the outcome, his real contribution has been sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm with each company, and from my discussions with a number of the groups, he has done just that...and more.

Just about an hour until the banquet ends and the awards ceremony begins. I know there are a lot of nervous students roaming the halls around me, so I'm sure they're excited to get to it. More on that this evening...