![SCC_BaldChairs_121 (2)](https://rakstagemom.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/scc_baldchairs_121-2.jpg?w=500&h=331)
Scottsdale Community College theatre arts students performing theater of the absurd from playwright Eugene Ionesco (Photo: Laura Durant)
Bald is especially beautiful for Scottsdale Community College students readying to take a play titled “The Bald Soprano” on the road. SCC is one of 10 colleges in its region chosen by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival to perform their full-length production at the regional festival taking place Feb. 7-11 at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.
Students and faculty converge on regional Kennedy Center festivals each year to share ideas and enjoy each other’s work. The SCC theatre arts department first presented “The Bald Soprano” by playwright Eugene Ionesco at SCC last season — while studying a theater genre dubbed “theatre of the absurd,” which features wordplay, irony and slapstick humor.
Folks who missed it the first time around can enjoy a free encore performance at the SCC performing arts center Thurs, Feb. 2 at 7pm. It’s directed by Randy Messersmith, who heads the SCC theatre arts department, and features voice modulation and media design by Boyd Branch.
The other works being performed in Utah are “The Elephant Man” by Bernard Pomerance (Bringham Young University), “Suddenly Last Summer” by Tennessee Williams (California Lutheran University), “The Dramatization of 365 Days” by H. Wesley Balk-adapted by Bruce Goodrich (California State University, Fullerton), “God Sees Dog: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead” by Bert V. Royal (Citrus College) and “The Cover of Life” by R.T. Robinson (Concordia University).
Also “The Unseen Hand” by Sam Shepard (Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy), “Cesar and Ruben, A Musical” by Ed Begley, Jr. (Santa Monica College), “Eurydice” by Sarah Ruhl (Utah Valley University) and “Xanadu” with book by Douglas Carter Beane and music/lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar (Weber State University).
Works presented regionally are evaluated by judges selected by the Kennedy Center. From these, four to six “of the best and most diverse” are chosen for a non-competitive festival held in spring at the Kennedy Center. Participating students have “all expenses paid.” So let’s root for the home team on this one!
The SCC theatre department is also preparing for their spring production of “The Miracle Worker.” And the SCC music department is gearing up for a full calendar of spring concerts. All are open to the public and many are free. Some take place at the performing arts center, while others are held at venues including ASU Kerr Cultural Center, Saguaro High School and more.
The next film in the anti-hate film series presented by the Anti-Defamation League and SCC comes to the SCC performing arts center Wed, Feb. 8. It’s a film from Not in Our Town titled “Light in the Darkness” which “addresses the growing problem of anti-immigrant violence in communities nationwide.”
Remember — as you’re looking for interesting and affordable dance, music, theater and visual arts experiences — that many local colleges and universities have full calendars of fabulous fare. Go there. Go “Bald.” It’s all beautiful.
— Lynn
Note: Click here to read an earlier review of “The Bald Soprano” at SCC
Coming up: Seuss sightings, Once upon a web
Updated 1/25/12 to correct date of free SCC theater performance