A dark comedy that takes a closer look at the
differences between women and men will be staged by the Department of Theatre
& Dance at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Oct. 18-20 and 23-26.
“Stags and Hens” will be performed in the Studio Theatre
in the Noel Fine Arts Center, 1800 Portage St., at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and
Saturday, Oct. 18 and 19, and Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 23-26. A 2 p.m.
matinee will be performed Sunday, Oct. 20.
Admission is $19 for adults, $18 for senior citizens and
$14 for students. Tickets are available at the Information and Tickets Office
in the Dreyfus University Center, http://tickets.uwsp.edu,
or by calling 715-346-4100 or 800-838-3378. Due to mature content, the show is
for older teens and adults.
The play takes audiences to a dance club in Liverpool,
England, during the 1970s, where Linda’s bachelorette party collides with her
fiancé Dave’s bachelor party. Add an old boyfriend, and life becomes even more
complicated. Playwright Willy Russell, known for “Educating Rita” and “Blood
Brothers,” set the action not on the dance floor but a place where men and
women are more open with each other - in the club’s restrooms.
“He wants to show the reality of behind-closed-doors
behavior,” said the play’s director, Stephen
Trovillion Smith, a professor of theatre. “It allows the audience to
peer into a place people don’t normally see, and shows people in a very
personal way.”
The play is also about seeing past the expectations of
others and taking risks, said Smith. “It makes you think about taking a chance
on your dreams, and not settling. Plus, it’s a very funny, witty play.”
Student actors have been working closely with a voice
coach, Assistant Professor Jared Hanlin, to perfect working-class Liverpool
accents. They are having fun with the costumes, which include ‘70s bell
bottoms, polyester shirts with long collars, turtleneck dickies, Farrah Fawcett
hairdos and heavy makeup. The detailed sets include running water in the
restroom sinks and disco music heard just outside the bathroom walls.
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