2008 Woodie Awards
'Nightmarish' fantasy world comes to MU in 'The Skriker'
Anna Deeds
Issue date: 11/9/07 Section: Campus
"It was always possible to think whatever your personal problem, there's always nature. Spring will return even if it's without me. Nobody loves me but at least it's a sunny day. This has been a comfort to people as long as they've existed. But it's not available any more. Sorry. Nobody loves me and the sun's going to kill me. Spring will return and nothing will grow," said the Skriker.
Through ideas such as this, The Miami University department of theater's production of The Skriker pulls its audience into a land of nightmarish reality and never lets go.
Set in London, the Skriker is a ruined fairy that haunts two friends, Josie and Lily. Josie has just recently murdered her newborn child and Lily has a daughter on the way. The Skriker is jealous of their fertility and aims to steal their babies.
The play, which has been described by New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley as a darker take on A Midsummer Night's Dream, comments on the damaged state of the modern world.
The Skriker will open at the Center for the Performing Arts' Gates-Abegglen Theatre, running from Nov. 15-17, 29-30, as well as Dec. 1-2. Tickets are $6 for students and $9 for the
general public.
"I believe the central idea in The Skriker is that we inhabit a world that is, quite literally, mad," Roger Bechtel, director and associate professor of theater, said. "Serial killers, global warming, religious and civil wars … have created an environment that is extremely difficult to deal with both physically and, especially, psychologically. But we are so (used) to this madness that we don't really see it-it's just images on the TV or computer screen."
The Skriker, played by first-year Caroline David, junior Emily Giant, and senior Courtney Maistros, shifts shapes in an effort to trick its prey. The play's author, Caryl Churchill, who has written more than 20 plays and is a three-time Obie Award winner, uses other villainous characters from British folklore (ala the Brothers Grimm) to add to the play's fantastical feel. Rawheadandbloodybones and Kelpie, played by juniors Alex Homer and Jason Howard respectively, are just a few.
Through ideas such as this, The Miami University department of theater's production of The Skriker pulls its audience into a land of nightmarish reality and never lets go.
Set in London, the Skriker is a ruined fairy that haunts two friends, Josie and Lily. Josie has just recently murdered her newborn child and Lily has a daughter on the way. The Skriker is jealous of their fertility and aims to steal their babies.
The play, which has been described by New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley as a darker take on A Midsummer Night's Dream, comments on the damaged state of the modern world.
The Skriker will open at the Center for the Performing Arts' Gates-Abegglen Theatre, running from Nov. 15-17, 29-30, as well as Dec. 1-2. Tickets are $6 for students and $9 for the
general public.
"I believe the central idea in The Skriker is that we inhabit a world that is, quite literally, mad," Roger Bechtel, director and associate professor of theater, said. "Serial killers, global warming, religious and civil wars … have created an environment that is extremely difficult to deal with both physically and, especially, psychologically. But we are so (used) to this madness that we don't really see it-it's just images on the TV or computer screen."
The Skriker, played by first-year Caroline David, junior Emily Giant, and senior Courtney Maistros, shifts shapes in an effort to trick its prey. The play's author, Caryl Churchill, who has written more than 20 plays and is a three-time Obie Award winner, uses other villainous characters from British folklore (ala the Brothers Grimm) to add to the play's fantastical feel. Rawheadandbloodybones and Kelpie, played by juniors Alex Homer and Jason Howard respectively, are just a few.
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