Of “sex, death, and algorithms!”–Arcadia, written by Tom Stoppard and Directed by Ted Swindley, premiered on February 26, 2011 by Lipscomb University Department of Theatre in conjunction with Blackbird Theater.
Set in the picturesque estate of Derbyshire, England, its mind boggling plot is interweaved throughout the timelines of classicalism and romanticism. Through a mixture of mystery, romance and comedy, it engages the intellectual mind to think about one’s theories and approach to life.
The theme throughout the play was “what do we know, how do we know, and do we know?” This theme unfolds as the hilarious clash of personality opposites, Hannah Jarvis and Bernard Nightingale, collaborate to solve the mystery concerning “Sidley Park.”
The young Thomasina Coverly and her modern counterpart Chloe Coverly inspire the revolutionary thinkers in all of us. The characters, in the splendor of their costumes, were brought to life by a team of seasoned professional actors and talented university students, each adding their own flavor and uniqueness to the story.
The actors portrayed their characters so well that you’d feel as though you were time travelling back and forth between old England and modern day England. The clothing, accents, architecture and everything everything was extremely impressive and believable.
If you’re a fan of romance, comedy and a twist of mystery, then this is definitely the play for you. It inspires both artists and scientists alike to think about what we know and how we know it.
I do warn you however, that this play will evoke your senses. You’ll want to discover the meaning of life, find the meaning behind the phrase “Et in Arcadia ego!” and learn about discoveries leading up to the Law of Thermodynamics. You’ll participate in some “metal aerobics,” as Denice Hicks, an actress and artistic director of Nashville Shakespeare Festival, said.
This play impacted the actors and actresses in many ways more than one. Artistic director of Blackbird Theater and actor Wes Driver intends to share his inspiration with the rest of the audience.
“For me, something critical in making the decision to be in this play was seeing it in London a long time ago,” Driver said. “It had such a powerful impact on me. I was in college at that time, and most audience members could gleam only so much out of its very complex work. But the cumulative effect of the whole thing just completely [worked] me over, and so I wanted to be able to create that experience for other people.”
This play guarantees a good dose of laughter and genius! Seasoned actor Jeff Boyet proves this.
“It makes me feel smarter, it does!” Boyet said. “It is a brilliant piece that you can’t walk away [from] as an actor just thinking ‘oh, I just did a show. I hope the play will really stir the emotions and the thought process of the people in the audience.”
Indeed, it did. This play demonstrated dynamic performances and well deserves the title of “brilliant entertainment.” It is definitely worth seeing once or twice! If you haven’t seen it yet, be sure to catch it as it returns to enlighten on March 4-6 and March 11-12 at Lipscomb University.