The one act festival has taken a slight turn this year with a new producer and new schedule for the spring. Senior Christan McKay will be producing this year’s festival as a result of Professor of Theater Dick Major’s sabbatical. McKay is the first student ever to produce the festival. McKay has served in many of Milligan’s theatrical performances including Oedipus, the Odd Couple, Hamlet, and the Christmas Dinners.
The festival consists of three one-act plays and two short films. The one-act festival will run from April 29 to May 1. The plays will be performed on the first two days of the festival in SUB7, once each day, and the short films will run on May 1 in Wilson Auditorium.
McKay, junior Michele Dietz, and graduate Adam Meyers are directing the plays while juniors Warren McCrickard and Phil Brock are producing the short films. All have been involved with the festival before with the exception of film student Phil Brock.
McCrickard’s film, entitled “Next Stall Please,” was co-written by sophomore Josiah Potter and stars juniors Dave Guyer, Lindsey Carver and Mitch Kohlmann and Professor of Psychology Bert Allen. The setting for the film is in a public restroom.
“It’s a statement film,” said McCrickard. “As Christians we have to try to mediate between extremes—to live in the world, but not be of the world. The film will address this through bathroom conversation.”
Brock’s film, titled “Untiltled,” was written by Brock last year in Assistant Professor of Communications Kenny Suit’s screenwriting class and revised in the months since. The story is about a boxer, played by junior Dimitri Jansen, who is trying to regain the title that he has lost. Among the 18 cast members, other lead roles include juniors Mitch Kohlmann and Nick DeGroot, playing opposing boxers; sophomore Anthony Dunning as Jansen’s manager, and junior Leslie Burke plays the role of his wife.
Among the plays include Michele Dietz’s “The Spectrum Six”, Adam Meyer’s “The Role of Della”, and Christan McKay’s “Christopher Durang’s Medea.”
Dietz’s play is based on the color king who has decided that it is time for the colors to account for their time on earth. Leading roles are played by junior Jess Carter, junior John Anliker, and senior Magnolia Boddy.
Meyer’s “The Role of Della” is about a typical audition where the lead role is Della. Lead roles are played by sophomore Crystal VanMeter and junior Paige Wassel,
McKay’s “Christopher Durang’s Medea” is a comedy based upon a spoof of a Greek tragedy. McKay’s leading actors are seniors Stephanie Troyer, Jon Hall, Kristen Speak and Laura Jones.