Friday and Saturday, April 27 and 28, senior and director Jennifer Reeder and her cast transformed the Norman James Theatre into a realm of madness.
Sponsored by the Riverside Players, Lanie Robertson's melodrama, The Insanity of Mary Girard, was based on a true story.The show focused on the life of Mary Girard (played by Megan Usilton) and her battle against mental illness. As one of the richest men in America during the eighteenth century, Steven Girard (freshman Tom Clancy) uses his power and monetary influence to keep his adulterous wife, Mary, institutionalized for her "supposed" violent outbursts.
Despite doctors' indications that she may only have been eccentric, Steven bribes hospital officials to imprison his wife, then pregnant with another man's child.
While in the asylum, four Furies (seniors Dennis Wilson and Sasha Thachik, sophomore Sarah Johnson, and freshman Kate Bernstein) accompany Mary on a journey through the past, present, and future.
According to Reeder, "In essence, they are what break her down" and cause her to choose insanity over the materialistic world outside of her cell-like room. Reeder tried to portray Mary's character as "a victim of circumstance and society, rather than of her sanity."
In her travels to the future, Mary discovers that the child she carries lives only five months, and that she does not venture from the asylum's walls until her death twenty-five years later. Rather than face the pain of such a bleak existence and the "greed and self-indulgence" of the world outside, said Reeder, Mary makes a conscious choice, electing insanity.
The play closed on a dramatic note with Mary repeatedly muttering the solitary word, "Insane."
Involved in WC theatre since her freshman year, veteran director Reeder proposed the show to the Riverside Players as her last artistic effort.
As a high school student, Reeder performed the play as a thirty-minute competition piece. Also ending her undergraduate career with the play, Reeder felt she would come "full circle."Reeder and stage manager Liz Stark held open auditions for the show before spring break. Rehearsals began immediately after students' return to campus and consisted of two or three rehearsals per week, though the number increased to four or five as opening night drew near.
Reeder collectively spent over four to five hours with specific cast members in order to split up the script. "It is a very difficult play to direct. The Furies function as a kind of Greek chorus. They aren't divided," said Reeder.
These particular scenes were especially arduous in that they required the actors to speak and move as a collective whole. "I've never done choreography before, so it was difficult getting them to be in unison, but they have done a fabulous job," Reeder said. "It was nice to see a lot of these people who are [usually] in comedic roles take on something dramatic."
Audience member Mary Stipe said, "I thought all the performers were excellent, especially the Furies, since their lines must have taken a lot of time and practice to properly pull off! The show was both enlightening and haunting ... It depressed me to know that our society was capable of treating women in such a manner, but the show did a wonderful job of getting this point across."
Such complex interpretations as Robertson's subtle social criticism of women's roles in society during this era and the atrocious treatment of mental patients also made direction a troublesome task.
"Men were considered women's legal guardians [and were therefore treated as] property," said Reeder.
"There were so many [thematic] decisions ... Was [Mary] crazy? Is she at fault? Who's the father of her baby?" explained Reeder. The show was fast-paced, so the cast had to sacrifice an intermission and perform continuously without any breaks.
As an integral dramatic effect, the set design drawn and built by Andrew Cowles, consisted only of an eight-foot-tall chair, vaguely built to resemble an electric chair, and a series of gray sheets draped in the background.
"The characters are based on reality and fantasy," said Reeder.
"The Furies emerge out of the sheets and appear to Mary in her cellar room.""The visuals Jenn created were definitely the best part of the play," commented junior Katie Kolacki. "At every second, there was something interesting and stimulating to look at. The blocking and movement of the characters was excellent - you never knew where characters or their voices were going to emerge from."
When asked about the efforts of her cast, Reeder said, "They've all worked so hard for this. They've really grasped the concept and picked it up and ran with it."
Senior Gina Mitchell agreed: "I was very impressed by this production, particularly with its visual appearance. The choreography of the play was mesmerizing; the actors' movements really made the play come alive."
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