By David Slifer 

Black Comedy is the first show of the semester! It was directed by David Sebren and ran the 29 and 30 of January. The show was going to run from the 2931 but the Saturday shows were unfortunately canceled due to the snow and ice. The show follows the character of Brindsley, a young and poor artist who is prepared for the wealthiest man in the world to come and buy some of his art. His fiancé Carol and him have made the apartment nice and furnished with their neighbor Harold’s furniture. The night is prepped and ready to be amazing, until a fuse is blown and the lights go out. That is only the start until Harold’s neighbors, Carol’s father and a secret of Harold’s all arrive and make the night a struggle.  

The shows cast consisted of Ash Christian as Brindsley Miller, Laiken Skinner as Carol Melkett, Azariah Surratt as Miss Furnival, Cameron Mackey as Colonel Melkett, John Dibbins as Harold Gorringe, Robin Wilson as Clea, Bryson Carter as Schuppanzigh and Jalen Troublefield as Georg Bamberger. The shows understudy cast had Yahir Betancourt as Brindsley Miller, John Michael Mottola as Colonel Melkett and Georg Bamberger, Casey Johnson as Harold Gorringe and Schuppanzigh, Briana Bostic as Carol Melkett and Clea and Shayla Beulah as Miss Furnival.  

As stated earlier this show had its Saturday shows canceled. Much more happened behind the scenes due to the weather with the director David Sebren saying before the show started “this process was not normal.” With all the struggles, Black Comedy was still put on and had amazing turnouts both nights. The audience was full of laughter. The cast and crew both did phenomenal jobs with every aspect of the show.  

When first walking in the audience was shown this very big set. The design for the show consisted of a second floor for when Brindsley, Clea and Carol all had moments in. this was something you might not see often but it was perfectly put together.  

The actors in this show all did an amazing job. Not only did they have to portray their characters, but there was the environment of the power being out. They needed to act as if they were feeling their way around the apartment. This was done well as the blocking for this show helped to make it feel as if the actors could not see two feet in front of them. They had to act as if the only senses they were able to use were hearing and touch. They all did a great job at pulling this off. There were many times characters were almost about to run into each other. Although that was not the case at times, it had the audience worrying and reacting at that possibility. This was a task that could have been difficult to do, but the entire cast perfectly pulled it off. 

With the many obstacles that this show endured, everyone put their all into it and put on one amazing performance. Look out for news involving the Student Directed One Acts, otherwise known as the Winter Shorts. The performance days will be February 20-21. The last show of the season will be Two Gentlemen of Verona which will be performed April 16-18.