Shakespeare isn\u2019t available for questions about Hamlet\u2019s lines \u2014 but a different playwright, Kimberly Belflower, anticipates a \u201clovely exchange\u201d with student actors at Furman.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of them have never worked with a living playwright before,\u201d Belflower said.<\/p>\n
And it\u2019s not just that students can ask her questions \u2014 Belflower will use their input to continue to refine her new play, \u201cJohn Proctor is the Villain.\u201d She calls it a gift to incorporate \u201cso many smart, engaged voices.\u201d<\/p>\n
Belflower\u2019s time on campus is made possible by The Farm Theater in New York, which connects emerging playwrights with colleges and universities in a unique collaboration to develop new plays. The play will be performed April 9-13 at 8 p.m. at The Playhouse on campus.<\/p>\n
\u201cJohn Proctor is the Villain\u201d began to take shape in spring of 2018, with students contributing ideas before Belflower even began to write. Two of the three schools involved \u2013 in Florida and Kentucky \u2013 have already staged versions of the play. Furman\u2019s April production will be the last before Belflower and Farm Theater present the finished play in New York for possible production.<\/p>\n
The story is set in a rural Georgia high school where a class is reading Arthur Miller\u2019s \u201cThe Crucible.\u201d Relationships shift and secrets are exposed as they dig into a story set centuries before and ultimately see its connection to the contemporary #MeToo movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal of the show is not to shock,\u201d said Karsen Green \u201919, a theatre arts and psychology major who plays Shelby, one of the main characters. \u201cIt\u2019s to educate. It\u2019s to inspire.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Farm emphasizes theater as a means of engaging the community. That focus \u2013 plus the themes addressed in the play \u2013 drove the decision to make outreach part of the production. Experts in fields such as religion, feminism, sex education and advocacy will lead talkback sessions after some performances.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of weight to this,\u201d said Cammi Stilwell \u201920, understudy for Shelby. \u201cIt feels timely, and I think everyone is very aware of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stilwell, a theatre arts major, has been involved since the beginning, from a Skype conversation with Belflower to a New York trip to read and refine the first draft of the play.<\/p>\n
Director Maegan Azar, associate professor of acting and directing at Furman, keeps reminding cast members this isn\u2019t a typical production.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, you might memorize your lines and then (Belflower) comes in for her weekend with us and you learn new lines after that,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is kind of her last opportunity to play with something and we have to be open to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Belflower was amazed by the differences between the first and second shows. It wasn\u2019t that the first school didn\u2019t handle the material well \u2014 \u201cthe play\u2019s just better,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The Furman actors rolled with the changes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt keeps the show fresh,\u201d said Patrick Fretwell \u201919, a theatre arts and communications major who plays a teacher in the show. \u201cIt\u2019s energizing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Azar said they\u2019re having a taste of real life as they help bring a new work to life.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat flexibility is a real challenge for student actors,\u201d Azar said. \u201cBut it is exactly how the new play experience works in the professional world.\u201d<\/p>\n