The Department of Theatre presents the final production of the 2001-02 season-multi-medi@tion- a student-created performance piece directed by faculty member Assunta Kent.
“multi-medi@tion” is an original work created by students in Assunta Kent’s theater class, THE 399-Devised Theater.
Kent spent last spring semester on sabbatical at King Alfred’s College in England, a school known for its use of “devised theater” as a way to teach theater. Drawing from its and her own techniques, she put ideas into action with this production.
Kent says she started her class with typical theater games, exercises, yoga and improvisations, which gradually developed into a series of dances, masked pieces and sketches. She guided the cast in developing a theme and structuring the scenes.
The class wanted to merge several different themes-the self and one’s identity within a group; the animal and spiritual nature of humans; and the journey of life.
Kent chose to use chakras, the body’s seven energy centers (from the Vedaic belief system of Hinduism) and their corresponding color, sound, and primal roles of the self. The set design is a giant image of a human being with the chakras, illuminated by lights colored for that chakra (green for the heart center, yellow for solar plexus, etc.)
On this set the life journey from birth to midlife is symbolically enacted. Different aspects of life as a human-education, work, love, loss, etc.-are recreated through dances, sketches with masks, humorous animations, poetry, live and electronic music, and visual projections.
Performances will be held April 26 through May 4 on the Main Stage in Russell Hall on the Gorham campus. Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. with the Sunday, April 28 matinee at 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 for the general public, $7 for seniors, and $5 for students. Call the Theatre Box Office at 780-5151.