Elaina Eakle
ehe001@marietta.edu
The Marietta College Theatre Department will debut their spring production, Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie,” on Feb. 19.
“The Glass Menagerie” is a four-character memory play set in the late 1930s, and was Williams’ first widely successful play, as well as his most autobiographical.
“The protagonist is a young man reliving the events and the story that led up to him leaving his home and family,” Director Casiha Felt said. “Throughout the play, we watch our main character, Tom, struggle with his need to escape the stifling environment of home and to make his own way in the world, and that, as it plays in opposition with his responsibility to his family both financially and emotionally.”
Felt believes that though the events in the play occur decades ago, the play has become “strangely relevant.”
“I think there’s this sense in the play of what is yet to come,” she said. “They’re on the brink of war… and I think that that anxiety with where we are politically right now exists.”
In addition to being socially relevant, Felt explained that many of the themes the play explores are universal.
“A young person in their 20s struggling with should I leave home and go be the person that I need to be, that’s always and forever,” she said.
The play will also incorporate both professional and student talent. Local actress Carolina Alvarez will play the role of the mother, Amanda. Alvarez earned an MFA in acting, and has over 20 years of experience acting in New York City, where she previously lived, as well as five other states. Felt explained that because “The Glass Menagerie” is a drama rather than a comedy, they wanted there to be a real age difference between Amanda and her children in order to make the family dynamic stronger.
Alvarez said that she has greatly enjoyed working with the students.
“They’re so talented and it’s such a pleasure to be around these students who will be really well suited to professional careers,” she said. “Making this play with them, it will be an unforgettable experience.”
Sophomore Sawyer Shafer, who plays the role of Tom Wingfield, believes working with Alvarez has helped him to grow as an actor.
“From the first read-through, I knew this process was going to be amazing, because Carolina has so much in her arsenal as an actress that I always have to be on my toes, prepared for whatever she is willing to throw my way in the moment,” he said.
Shafer was equally impressed by the play itself.
“I personally love how poetic Tennessee Williams is in the text of the play,” he said. “There is so much symbolism and subtext to explore in the world of the play, that I’m sure even I have missed some of it in the process of rehearsals, but that truly speaks to just how well-written the script is.”
Senior Lindsey Schrock, who plays Laura Wingfield, is also excited for what will be her last production at MC.
“This play is one I have always treasured, and it is such an honor to be in it during my final semester here at Marietta College,” she said. “It is the perfect way to end my collegiate acting career.”
Schrock predicts that “The Glass Menagerie” will do more than entertain audiences for an evening; it will give them something to think about.
“Audiences will definitely walk away in contemplative silence, thinking about their lives, their families, their fragility, their joy,” she said. “‘The Glass Menagerie’ achieves such a diverse dynamic of emotions, and audiences partake in this journey.”
Performances of “The Glass Menagerie” at the Hermann Fine Arts Center are scheduled for Feb. 19 and Feb. 20 at 8 p.m., Feb. 21 at 2 p.m., Feb. 26 and Feb. 27 at 8 p.m., and Feb. 28 at 2 p.m. Tickets can be reserved at w3.marietta.edu/~thea/boxoffice.html.
