Men On Boats
By Jacklyn Backhaus
Directed by Beth Kattelman
Roy Bowen Theatre
October 26 – November 5
John Powell, geologist, Army soldier, and explorer of the American West, sets off with a crew of nine men in 1869 to explore and map the Colorado River and its canyons. On this first official government-sponsored trip through the Grand Canyon, the explorers bond with each other as they face peril over rapids and through the wild. Four boats start the journey, but only three survive to the end.
Jacklyn Backhaus (Wives; India Pale Ale) explores masculinity and gender in this captivating comedy written to be performed by non-cisgender males.
The Country Wife
By William Wycherley
Directed by Tom Dugdale and E.J. Westlake
Thurber Theatre
November 9 - 17
Horner spreads the rumor that he’s impotent to gain other men’s trust and access to their wives, seducing the latter, and cuckolding the former. Pinchwife attempts to keep his much younger and inexperienced new wife away from the attention of London rakes such as Horner. Horner’s friend Harcourt falls in love with Pinchwife’s sister Alithea and seeks her hand in marriage even though she’s engaged Sparkish, a vain socialite.
First produced in 1675, this play spent nearly 200 years banned from stage and print because of its scandalous story and risqué language. Our production of William Wycherley’s Restoration comedy uses Netflix’s Bridgerton as an inspiration, mixing periods and blending styles to explore themes of love, fidelity, freedom, and power.
Wilderness
By Seth Bockley and Anne Hamburger
Directed by Mandy Fox
River Den
February 15 - 23
At an outdoor wilderness camp for troubled youth, six teenagers grapple with mental health, addiction, and gender and sexual identity. They laugh, cry, and rage against the world, finding friendship as they attempt to navigate their way to adulthood at a time when the society no longer offer a clear path. The trauma they experience leaves them with anxiety, sadness, and self-doubt.
This devastating docudrama by Seth Bockley (Gilgamesh and Enkidu; Tabletop Tragedies; Farewell Fables) and Anne Hamburger (A Dozen Dreams; Basetrack Live) explores the psychological trauma adolescents face today.
Everybody
By Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Directed by Kevin McClatchy
River Den
March 1 - 9
In this allegory, Everybody seeks someone to accompany them through life’s journey in hopes of securing a positive outcome when judged by God at the end of their life. After being rejected by Friendship, Kinship, Stuff, Mind, Five Senses, and Understanding, Everybody turns to Love for support. In the end, only Love leads to salvation as together, hand-in-hand, they crawl into the grave.
2016 MacArthur Fellow Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Appropriate; An Octoroon; Gloria) was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Everybody, a contemporary take on the 15th-Century morality play Everyman. To symbolize the randomness of death, five of the actors are assigned a role each performance through a lottery.
DigiEYE
Curated by Janet Parrott
Film/Video Theater, Wexner Center for the Arts
October 20
An evening of live-action and animated moving-image shorts created by students from the Department of Theatre, Film, and Media Arts, the Department of Dance, and the Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design.
Moving-Image Production Senior Showcase
Film/Video Theater, Wexner Center for the Arts
April 12 and 13
Seniors in the moving-image production major create original short films as part of their required capstone course. This evening presents the work they produced as part of their culminating experience at Ohio State.