NACOGDOCHES, Texas - The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present the student-directed, one-act play "Twister" by SFA Playwright-In-Residence Jack Heifner at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 31, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 1, in the Downstage Theatre on the SFA campus.
McAllen senior Pedro Adan Dominguez is the director, and he describes "Twister" as the story of a couple that survives a destructive natural disaster to find that their dreams for the future have been very different.
Characters Betty and Roy are apparently the only survivors of a tornado, which has destroyed their tiny Texas town and all their belongings. After the initial shock wears off, Roy sets about trying to restore their lives, while Betty, suddenly freed from all possessions, wants to move on and start over, according to Dominguez.
The resulting debate is both hilarious and revealing, as Roy resists the notion that what they had was nothing great, while Betty pours out hopes and frustrations that she has bottled up for years, Dominguez explains. In the end, it is the dream that triumphs: Betty charges off to catch a bus that may never arrive, and Roy attempts to hold on to the present that is fast becoming the past.
The cast includes Plano junior Cecily Maucieri as Betty, and Sour Lake sophomore Ian Ritchey as Roy.
The production staff includes Gabriel Penaloza-Hernandez, Austin junior, stage manager; Victoria Medrano, Edinburg junior, scenic designer; Chelsea Rodrigue, Maypearl junior, costume designer; Danika Pettyjohn, Fort Worth senior, lighting designer; Jessica Tinker-Akers, Marshall graduate student, sound designer; and Angel Williams, Beaumont senior, properties master.
Dominguez is a B.F.A. acting and directing candidate. He recently directed "Beautiful Noises" by Scott C. Sickles and was assistant director for "Really Really" by Paul Downs Colaizzo. He recently performed the roles of Lyncoya/ensemble in "Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson" and Andrew (age 5) in "Why Do We Laugh?" He plans to begin his B.F.A. internship in fall 2017 and graduate in spring 2018.
Faculty production advisor is Scott Shattuck.
Tickets are $4. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit theatre.sfasu.edu. The Downstage Theatre is located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Drive.
Axe ’Em, Jacks!