By Ruby Osorio, Class of 2015
The talents of Catawba College’s first-year students will be on display in “Fresh Faces,” a series of short plays. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 7, 8 and 22, and at 2 p.m. Oct. 9 and 23 in the Florence Busby Corriher Theatre on campus.
Catawba’s tradition of first-year performances began in the fall of 2007. Cast members are all freshman students, other than junior transfer student Alicia Almodovar. Ray Collins of Winston-Salem, assisted by senior Zach McRae of Hendersonville, directs the production, which is a series of one-act comedies by David Ives. Other crew members include junior Katie Higgins of Durham, stage manager; sophomore Allison Andrews of Sherrills Ford, assistant stage manager; and sophomore Tyler Elrod, technical coordinator.
The short plays offered in “Fresh Faces” include:
“Mere Mortals”: Joe, Charlie and Frank sit 50 stories high off the ground with their heads in the clouds. While each of these goons is outspoken, all have charm. This masculine play has a loud, Northeastern honesty in the dialogue that spares no feelings.Cast members include Iliana Rivera as Joe; Sara Morales as Charlie and Ashley O’Donnell as Frank.
“Foreplay Or: The Art of Fugue”: This romantic comedy features the characters Amy, Chuck I, Annie, Chuck II, Alma and Chuck III, who discover that miniature golf can become a battlefield between the sexes. Cast members include Lara William, Maggie Saunders, Sara Slusarick, Ryan Miles, Eric Englishand Donato Clandorf.
“Time Flies”: Horace and May the Mayfly really hit it off and instinctively fall for each other as their hearts buzz. Antenna in antenna, they fly in hopes of beating the clock as nature takes its course. Cast members include Verity Harden, Casey Suddeth and Alicia Almodovar.
“Degas C’est Moi”: A regular guy named Ed discovers he wants to be Degas. He grows an appreciation for the real world around him and realizes how much he has in his regular life. Keep a close eye on Ed or Degas because you never know where he is going to take you next. Cast members include Ryan Jones, Amanda Becker, Alicia Almodovar and Ruby Osorio.
“The Variations on the Death of Trotsky”: Trotsky, a proletariat living in Coyoacan, Mexico, is too close to his enemy. Each day, he lives a nightmare as he sees an unattractive addition to his appearance — a mountain climber’s axe. This play is a scrambled comedy of facts or implied truth. Cast members include C.J. Mowery, Michelle Newberger, Dillon Reid, Shannon O’Donnell, and Ruby Osorio.
“Sure Thing”: If you could start over, what would you say or do? The conversations between Bill and Betty are often painful, but they give an honest and comical sense of what goes through the human psyche when you meet a stranger. If you get it exactly right, you might get the girl. Cast members include Pen Chance, Katlyn Shaw and Emily Olszewski.
Admission to“Fresh Faces” is free. The lobby opens one hour before and the house opens half an hour before curtain. The entire performance will run approximately one hour and 45 minutes. Parental discretion is advised. For more details, contact the Theatre Arts Box Office at 704-637-4481.