The Department of Theatre and Dance presents Shelagh Stephenson's An Experiment with an Air Pump, on January 20–22 in the Seeler Studio Theatre. The play is at once a mystery, a story of illicit love, and an examination of passion—particularly the passion for science. Leaping back and forth between 1799 and 1999, in a large house in Newcastle on Tyne, the play sets numerous characters looking to the century ahead for hope, while debating scientific ethics and the elusive mysteries of the heart. Stephenson's title comes from Joseph Wright of Derby's painting An Experiment with a Bird in an Air Pump.
Guest artist Alexander Draper '88 (see accompanying interview) plays Fenwick, the presiding scientist in 1799, and Tom, a former English professor in 1999.
Cassidy Freeman '05 is Fenwick's wife, Susannah. Completing the 18th-century cast are Lauren Kiel '07, Lucy Faust '07, John Stokvis '05, Eliza Hulme '05, and Conor O'Neill'07. Becky Martin '05 is Tom's spouse Ellen. Joining her in the 20th century are Nell Wright '05 and Peter Abrikian '06. Ben Salkowe '07 is the stage manager, and Brian Siegele '07 is the assistant to the director. Sheila Seles '05 is the company dramaturg.
The set for the production is by Mark Evancho, with lighting by Hallie Zieselman and costumes by Jule Emerson. Technical direction is by Allison Rimmer, with Jim Dougherty.
Performances are January 20–22 in the Center for the Arts' Seeler Studio Theatre, at 8:00 p.m. each evening, plus a 2:00 p.m. matinee on Saturday. Tickets are $5/4/3 and go on sale January 6 at the Box Office.
A free, Behind-the-Scenes Lunch and Discussion takes place on Tuesday, January 18, at 12:30 p.m. at the Seeler Studio Theatre. Learn more about the production through a dialogue with director Cheryl Faraone, members of the cast, and design staff. Lunch is provided.
An Interview With Alex Draper '88
Director Cheryl Faraone spoke with actor Alex Draper '88 in November about his upcoming appearance in An Experiment with an Air Pump,and his work beyond Middlebury.
CF: What interests you about the play An Experiment with an Air Pump?
AD: What attracts me to Air Pump, besides the fact that it is a great play and has two great parts for me, is that it is anchored by a very topical and emotionally charged central issue in stem cell research. It's obviously a rich subject, but what is great about the play is that no viewpoint is presented as being right or wrong. Rather, the topic is opened up and allowed to exist as an evolving argument. Also, Air Pump is a smart, fun, meaty play that demands a lot of the actors and the audience. I'm looking forward to rehearsals.
CF: Tell us about the previous residency you did here. Didn't you teach and appear inScenes from an Execution?
AD: Yes, in 1995, I spent a semester here teaching Acting 1 and performing in Richard Romagnoli's production of Scenes. It was very rewarding. I love teaching, and I didn't know that until I taught here. There are some very talented, smart students here, which makes teaching both a pleasure and a challenge. And what is especially great about Middlebury is that, thanks to a concerted effort to keep in touch with graduates, I have seen former students work their way through the department, through PTP [Potomac Theatre Project], and through grad school to become my peers and colleagues. I have either worked with them or seen them transition into professional careers of their own. You feel like you're part of a continuum, and it's very rewarding.
As for Scenes, it was an unbelievable experience because we were all so proud of it, and it just wouldn't go away. It was remounted five times and was successful in every incarnation, moving from a departmental production to being selected for ACTF's [American College Theatre Festival] National Festival at the Kennedy Center, to a PTP production at Olney, and finally to an Off-Broadway run in New York City. And at each turn, all aspects of the production—acting, direction, set, lights, costumes—were critically praised. So it was something that stuck with us.
CF: What was it like working with the students?
AD: It was—and is—great. I am lucky in that I have had the benefit of spending five seasons with PTP, two as a student and three as a professional, so I've become used to a high level of talent and accomplishment in the students here. I think there is something about the kind of students who come to Middlebury. Their talent is uncluttered. They have a strong sense of who they are, and that is a good place to start working, be it on a play or in class.
CF: Are you teaching now? What do you like about teaching?
AD: I have maintained some connection to teaching my whole career, and right now I teach a third year BFA acting class for NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. I love it. I find that being able to articulate how you approach your work in terms that are clear and practical to others sharpens those faculties in yourself.
Also, it feeds my yearning for some kind of continuum, as I said before. I was a founding member of Blue Light Theatre, started by fellow alum Greg Naughton ['90], and part of why the company existed was to provide a forum through which not only the craft but also the lore of the American theatre could be passed from veteran actors to younger actors just beginning their careers in New York. The company was very successful for six years, and the more I worked, the more I had to pass along. Joanne Woodward, who was a member of the company and directed two shows, proudly pointed out that through our work we were reaching back, connecting hand to hand all the way to the Group Theatre and the birth of what is regarded as American Method Acting. There is something grand about that, a kind of loftiness of purpose that I envied in the English acting tradition but was unaware of here. It is a good thing to be a part of, and I get that same sense of purpose and history from teaching, and learning from, students.
CF: You mentioned your work with PTP. Tell me more about that.
AD: What I love about PTP is how successful it is, not just as a training ground for student actors but as a theatre company. I did my first work alongside professional actors there, and I remember the great relief of realizing that we were no longer being treated as students. We were simply young actors playing great parts in challenging productions. That experience was invaluable. When I returned as a professional what excited me most was simply the quality of the work. PTP was doing fantastic plays and doing them well. And that hasn't changed in 18 years.