A scene from Exit the King by Eugene Ionesco, performed by PSU theatre students during “Black Box Madness.” (Left to right) Queen Marguerite (Michelle Miller) and nurse Juliette (Crystal Mackey) look on as the invalid King (John Phipps) is comforted by the Doctor (Brandon Heath) and Queen Marie (Nina Livellara). Photo courtesy of Andrew F. Mannone.

It’s academic.” That’s a phrase we hear quite a bit. But when it comes to theatre at Plymouth State University, it’s easy to apply.

“From the theoretical aspect comes the actual doing. Production time isn’t an excuse for not doing academic work. Theatre uses, to a varying degree, every area of academic study offered at Plymouth State,” says Paul Mroczka, director of theatre. The boundary between academics and production is permeable, however, and the two aspects of theatre experience at PSU overlap. A recent production, Black Box Madness, is a good example.

The production was a requirement of a special topics course—Advanced Directing and Acting—for upper level students co-taught by Mroczka and Assistant Professor Elizabeth Cox. Students selected for the course had already completed foundation courses. Class requirements included reading and analyzing a list of avant garde theatre works and then selecting three short plays to produce. They chose The Maids by Jean Genét, Exit the King by Eugene Ionesco and Mud by Maria Irene Fornes. Members of the class formed a theatre company and students filled all roles from director to set designer, as well as the dramatic roles.

“To get to the point of understanding such complex dramas, students have to go back to their academic background—their prior courses,” Cox says. “It’s incredibly exciting when all the elements we talk about in classes click in and you get that big ‘YES!’ response.”

Mroczka adds, “I love rehearsal—there are so many ‘moments,’ tiny things like the discovery of a single word or gesture.”

The Maids begins with two French sisters who work for a wealthy socialite; they play games—dressing up in madame’s clothes. Soon the line between real and pretend blurs as they plot to poison their employer with a cup of tea laced with sleeping pills.

Exit the King addresses how we face mortality. The king is dying, unprepared to do so even at 400 years of age. He learns how to die with the help of those around him, some real and some facets of himself.

The final production, Mud, was for mature audiences. Cox explains, “Fornes writes about women and how they are treated—not in a kind way. Her work looks at the uneducated person in terms of education, relationships, upward mobility, … I think her plays slap you in the face … make you feel extremely uncomfortable.”

Mroczka points out that the B.A. degree in theatre at Plymouth State has an academic foundation, rather than being “craft based.” The students can verify the value of this approach.

Senior theatre arts/acting major Toby Paul trained in New York City in the summer of 2003. “I was amazed at how much better prepared I was than most of the other participants,” he recalls. “I had already studied techniques by Meisner and Stanislavsky, for instance. The other students were having to learn those techniques during the workshop. That gave me an advantage.”

Crystal Mackey (theatre arts/tech design and childhood studies) says, “I want to be a director. To do that, I need to understand all aspects of a play—the intellectual content, the acting component, all the elements of production. It isn’t enough to have acted—I’ve acted in lots of shows. I needed more than that, so I transferred to Plymouth from the New Hampshire School of the Arts.”

Senior theatre acting/directing major Mike Gremo says the faculty are passionate about theatre and about imparting knowledge, putting in many hours outside of class. Students appreciate the opportunity to work next to faculty as performers: “They are trying things and working with us and practicing acting techniques just like us. Or maybe Paul [Mroczka] is writing and having plays produced at the same time he is teaching. They are all active in the field.”

“This degree teaches us to interact, and communicate—qualities that are important in any field, and especially team environments,” concludes senior theatre/acting major Nina Livellara. “I chose this advanced acting class to try something extreme. It wasn’t an easy process; we were dealing with difficult plays, challenging concepts, creative student directors and budding actors. We faced many obstacles, but in the end we all came together and began to create. The final productions were born through a lot of struggle and joy, and the total experience is one I will never forget.”—EC