Visit the dark side of human
nature at the Studio Theatre
by Valerie Trosi
staff writer
Tbe play. The Vi sit, is a pitch-black
story of mystery and corruption llius
trating the darkness of betrayal and
revenge to its fullest. This unique
show begins in the Studio Theatre on
February 19th and continues to run
through the 28th.
in The Visit, an extremely wealthy
woman returns to the town she grew
up in only to find the village in eco
nomic turmoil. The villagers have no
alternative but to turn to her for help.
However, her offerings do not come
at a small price. She wants “justice,”
or rather her revenge on crimes com
mitted against her from the past.
Expiate the mystery and dark side
of human nature as friends and neigh
bors retaliate against each other in
order to get what they want. Will the
explanation of their actions erase (he
sins of die past and become suitable
punishment, or will it be destruction
for the whole town?
Tony Elliot, lecturer of Theatre and
Studio Theatre director, is particularly
pleased with die assortment of new
and experienced performers who to-
Comedian Ben Bailey Cures
Students’
by Ryan Cannon
staff writer
On Friday, January 22, dramatic
images of reading, writing, and arith
metic were dancing in the minds of
Behrend students in Bruno's. Just
then, an object shot out of the com
edy cosmos; it's a bird, it’s a plane,
no, it's stand-up comedian Ben
Bailey! Bailey delivered exactly what
those academically exhausted stu
dents were thirsting for laughter. At
a time when stand-up comedians are
often mediocre at best, it is difficult
to get a good laugh. Bailey’s routine
was surprisingly pleasing. He pro
vided his audience with some genu
ine laughter.
Bailey, a New Yorker, arrived at
Bruno's Cafe with a wide array of
weapons in his comedy arsenal. He
began the evening familiarizing him
self with some of the estimated 65
audience members by chatting with
students about campus life here a Be
hrend. This enabled him to put the
crowd's personality in direct aim, on
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gether make up the cast of The Visit.
Playing the lead roles of Claire
Zachanassian and Anton Sdiill are up
perclassmen Angel Moreno and Joe
Gel way.
This will be Angel's firs* Studio
Theatre performance although she is
skilled on stage. Joe has been sees in
the Studio Theatre before in such
memorable roles as Bo from last
year's production of Only You as well
as appearances in Antigone aad The
Rice of Strangers.
Another recognizable face in The
Visit is Bond Davis (playing Kobby,
the Blind Man) who has also been
seen in Only You playing Leo, as well
as a mix of other productions such ns
Heathen Valley, The Rice of Strang
ers, and The Pirates of Penzance.
Also from the Pirates of Penzance
cast are Daryl Dambaugh and Leo
Hanley.
Moving from the classroom to the
stage is assistant professor of Me
chanical Engineering, Ken Saunders,
playing the role of the mayor.
Making their exciting Studio The
atre debuts are Mark Ahrends, Jana
Magoc. David Sonney, Jack Kichura,
Susan Rohde. Tanya Waltenbaugh,
Amy Vay, and Bethany Cummings.
Stress at Bruno’s
which he opened fire with a barrage
of jokes.
Bailey delivered humorous puns
about topics such as college life,
people who dial incorrect telephone
numbers, incoherent sayings that
people use daily, the legalization of
marijuana, and the noise and police
of Manhattan. He then shocked the
audience with a startling confession.
At one point in his life, he had been
addicted to nicotine gum. However,
he did slowly dissolve his addiction
by smoking cigarettes instead.
The final part of his hour long act
was a collection of humorous obser
vations related to animals. One of
Bailey's insights was about testing
products on animals. He feels that
people should not get upset when
products like shampoos and soaps are
tested on animals because, after all,
animals would probably like to be
clean and enjoy soft, manageable hair,
too. Bailey also touched on the main
tenance of his pet dog.
At one point, he actually demon
strated for the audience what his dog
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Altogether these fourteen cast mem
bers make up an inspiring blend of
new and old faces.
Elliot commented that “Part of the
reason 1 chose this play, besides the
fact that k is a wonderfully dark story,
is hcrausr k offers many roles and
will allow many of our student actors
their fast performance experience. I
have adapted the play as mare of an
ensemble piece rather than a 'star' ve
hicle for the two central characters. I
think our campus will enjoy the mys
tery inherent in the story.”
The Visit will once more alter the
Studio Theatre’s appearance. The
stage will run down the center of the
studio, with the audience seated on
either side. “It will be a challenge for
me, for ray actors, and 1 think, for the
audience,” says Elliot. “But I dunk
this staging style will serve the play
well!”
This show is so unique you will not
want to miss it.
Reservations for The Visit can be
made starling February Bth, by call
ing the Studio Theatre Box Office at
898-6016.
Once again, the show will begin
running on February 19th through the
28th.
looks like when he squats and “fertil
izes” the neighbor's lawn. Bailey’s
animal-related comedy was by far his
best material.
The only disappointing aspect of
Bailey’s comedy act was a couple of
hilarious routines that closely re
sembled those of Jerry Seinfeld. To
be specific, they were comments
about the evolution of humans as
viewed by monkeys and cleaning up
after a dog by carrying around its fe
cal matter in a nice handy bag.
These jokes were extremely simi
lar to Seinfeld's, and definitely of
lower quality. However, plagiarism
among comedians is popular.
Overall, Bailey's performance was
enjoyable in a time where superb
comedy is scarce. Some vulgarity
was present, but it was kept toa mini
mum resulting in enjoyment for all
that attended.
To conclude on a personal note, as
comedy's mistress, I highly recom
mend seeing the comedians that per
form on Friday nights in Bruno's
Cafe.
Features
Students rehearse for the iinrominn Studio Theatre nresentation of The Visit
Comedian Ben Bailey performs at Bruno’s last Friday.
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Thursday December W. 1998 - The Behrend College Beacon -Page 9
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