– Taylor Deutscher<\/p>\n
The writer is a student in Comm 240 News Reporting.<\/p>\n
The Fort Hays State University Department of Music and Theatre continues to entertain students and citizens of Hays with its production of \u201cHarvey\u201d by Mary Chase, which opened March 6 and continues through March 9 in Felten-Start Theatre in Malloy Hall.<\/p>\n
The play is set in early spring of 1944, taking place in the old Dowd family mansion and the reception room of the psychiatrist clinic called Chumley\u2019s Rest. In the opening act, viewers learn Veta Louise Simmons (Samie Pfeifer, Hays community member) and her daughter Myrtle Mae (Hannah Keil, Hays sophomore) live in the family mansion with Veta\u2019s bachelor brother Elwood P. Dowd (Braden Pruitt, Hutchinson freshman).<\/p>\n
Characters soon reveal that Elwood can see a large, white rabbit named Harvey. Elwood believes Harvey is his best friend, as they tell each other everything. Veta grows tired of the nonsense and takes her brother to Chumley\u2019s Rest to have him treated, but a number of problems occur that make the process much more difficult.
\nBefore the heartfelt conclusion, audience members will experience an ironic twist.<\/p>\n
Members of the cast represent various ages and classifications.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was nervous because I got the lead as a freshman,\u201d Pruitt said. \u201cThat really creeped me out for a while.\u201d He said he later found that it was easy to work with the other cast members. Jill Herbert, Wichita sophomore, said, \u201cThis is the best cast that meshed\u201d that she has been a part of. \u201cIt made putting on the show a lot more fun.\u201d Herbert plays Ruth Kelly, a nurse at Chumley\u2019s Rest.<\/p>\n
Tim Tarkelly, Chanute senior, plays Dr. William Chumley. He said the experience was \u201czero drama, a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some cast members were not familiar with the play prior to their auditions, though for others, the possibility of appearing in \u201cHarvey\u201d was the inspiration for continuing theatre in college.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had heard of it when I was looking into colleges,\u201d Herbert said. \u201cI visited friends and they had a preview of \u2018Harvey\u2019 and that was the moment I was like, \u2018I really want to do theatre in college,\u2019 because I wasn\u2019t really sure if I wanted to continue it,\u201d Herbert said.<\/p>\n
Like Herbert, Tarkelly is fond of the production.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw the movie a million and half years ago,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of my favorites.\u201d The black and white film stars Jimmy Stewart in the title role.<\/p>\n
Pruitt was not as accustomed to the play as his fellow cast members, though he had heard of it before.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t really know what the show was about, so I didn\u2019t really know what I was diving into,\u201d Pruitt said. \u201cThat was the most nerve-wracking part for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The unfamiliarity was no problem, for the cast has put countless hours of work into the preparation of the show.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s so much outside of just being here,\u201d Pfeifer said. \u201cOutside you memorize your lines and you get into character. Then we get here, do each other\u2019s hair and makeup, costuming, set props. We\u2019re here hours in advance,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Tarkelly put the workload into perspective.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you think about it,\u201d he said, \u201clike Tyler [Wayman], for instance, is in scene shop 10 hours and rehearsal 15 hours a week, and he has to memorize his lines and do all of his character work. That\u2019s a part-time job.\u201d Wayman, McLouth sophomore, plays the role of Duane Wilson, an orderly at Chumley\u2019s Rest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a much more intensive extracurricular, as people like to call it, than they\u2019d imagine,\u201d Pfeifer said.<\/p>\n
Director Tomme Williams and the actors encourage students and community members to support the theatre. \u201cHarvey\u201d will be performed on March 7 and 8 at 7:30 p.m. and March 9 at 2:30 p.m. The production costs $10 for students, children and seniors and $15 for the general public.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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