SHERMAN, TEXAS—Austin College theatre students will present Becky Shaw, written by Gina Gionfriddo, April 18 through 20 at 7:30 p.m. in Ida Green Theatre of Ida Green Communication Center. Tickets, $8 each or free with an Austin College ID, will be available at the door. The production is directed by Austin College senior Mary Caroline Ingram of Southlake, Texas.
Ingram, who is completing a major in communication studies and a minor in history, calls the play a “black comedy of not too many manners.” She said the production follows a family as they weather the death of a father and the problems that stem from the loss of the patriarch—as well as a blind date that went awry.
“The characters try to mend themselves but find that it is easier said than done,” Ingram said. “The play focuses on the relationships in the family and those around them, and is filled with humanity, love, sadness, and humor, all culminating in what I think is one of the best plays I have ever read. It is quick-paced, full of wit, and filled with unforgettable characters such as the ever-snarky Max, and Becky Shaw, who wants so desperately for everything to work out, and yet it never seems to pan out as she plans.”
When Gionfriddo’s play launched in New York’s theatre district, a New York Times reviewer wrote that the “comedy of bad manners, a tangled tale of love, sex, and ethics among a quartet of men and women in their ’30s, is as engrossing as it is ferociously funny, like a big box of fireworks fizzing and crackling across the stage from its first moments to its last.”
The cast includes Lizzy Lincoln, a junior from Round Rock, Texas, as Suzanna Slater; Harrison Wilkie, a senior from Dallas, as Max Garrett; senior Missy Lyttle of Austin, Texas, as Susan Slater; senior Nicholas Tanner of Sunnyvale, Texas, as Andrew Porter; and Emma Merlo, a senior from Belton, Texas, as Becky Shaw.
Technical staff for the production includes sophomore Anika Payne of Fort Worth, Texas, stage manager, and junior Katherine Ailshire of Sherman, and sophomore Edgar Rodriguez of Odessa, Texas, as assistant stage managers. Senior Mateo Ervin of Austin, Texas, and senior Kaitlin Forsman of Conroe, Texas, are the costume designers. Liz Banks, theatre faculty, handles light design, and Ethan Koerner of the theatre staff is set designer. Other technical staff are junior Alex Benningfield of Austin, Texas, sound design; senior Evan Runyon of Carrollton, Texas, sound consultant, freshmen Lindsey Womack of Austin, Texas, and Nathan Johnson of Richmond, Virginia, prop designers; freshman Greyson Sanders of Springfield, Ohio, sound operator; freshman Anissa Chilmeran of McKinney, Texas, light operator; junior Conner Skinner of Hallsville, Texas, fly crew; and sophomore Spencer Nystrom of Mesquite, Texas, house manager. Making up the set crew are senior Meredith Hewitt of Seabrook, Texas; junior Chris Harrison of Graham, Texas; freshman Travis Kannarr of Richardson, Texas; and junior Garrett Jones of Rockwall, Texas, as set crew.
Ingram said she wants to share this play with Austin College and the greater community because she feels the character-based play will leave the audience with more awareness of themselves and the people with whom they chose to surround themselves.
The director said she felt connected to the play’s characters. “I fell in love with Max because he is the ultimate non-committing guy, and I felt as though I was Becky because, as great as she seems to be and seems to have it, nothing works out, especially not in her relationships.”
Ingram saw the show in London and said “it was as though a light bulb came on and I knew that Becky Shaw was it.” She said the play offers something for everyone, with romantic and comedic moments but also the serious and dramatic. “The play successfully blends varying genres, making it a unique ride to go on with the characters,” Ingram said. “I think that any audience watching the play will have the same reaction that I did, laughing at all of the jokes and yet at the end, coming away with a greater understanding of themselves and the world around them. It examines the human nature of us all.”
Austin College is a leading national independent liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas. Founded in 1849, making it the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original charter and name, the College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA). Recognized nationally for academic excellence in the areas of international education, pre-professional training, and leadership studies, Austin College is one of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives.