For the 2022-2023 season, Oxy Theater explored contemporary comedy, timely subject matter, a subversive take on a classic and Greek tragedy!
ELEVADA
Written by Sheila Callaghan
Directed by Wanlass Visiting Director Alana Dietze
Assistant Directed by Natalya Nielsen
Scenic & Lighting Design by Xinyuan Li
Costume Design by Aed McMillian
Sound Design by John Zalewski
Projection Design by Hsuan-Kuang Hsieh
Stage Managed by Kai Morfín
Ramona is reinventing herself following her second round of chemotherapy. Khalil has sold his identity to a major telecom and media corporation. June is learning to flirt again, post-divorce, and Owen has replaced his drug addiction with a massive collection of teas.
A romantic comedy about living in the liminal spaces and resisting the urge to disappear. When our world is turned upside down, who do we become? How do we connect when the only constant is change?
ROE
Written by Lisa Loomer
Directed by Wanlass Visiting Theater Artist Khanisha Foster
Scenic & Lighting Design by Xinyuan Li
Costume Design by Aed McMillian
Sound Design by John Zalewski
Projection Design by Hsuan-Kuang Hsieh
Stage Managed by Max Tel
Lisa Loomer's Roe takes us out of the courtroom, introducing us to the real women at the heart of the controversial Supreme Court decision. Powerful, funny, poignant, and inspiring, Roe reflects the polarization in America today while giving us a fast-moving, fair-minded look at the history of our complicated shared humanity. Chosen for this upcoming season for painfully obvious reasons, this vital project speaks directly to the current times.
Read about the show in The Occidental
OEDIPUS AT COLONUS
Written by Sophocles
Translated by Robert Fagles
Directed by Will Power
Stage Managed by Max Tel
Oedipus at Colonus is the last chapter in the Greek mythological tale of King Oedipus, the once revered ruler of Thebes, who was ostracized for unknowingly killing his own father and marrying his mother. The play shows a complex king attempting to redeem himself, and find some kind of peace in the face of exterior torments and internal feelings of anger and remorse. What follows is not only a single king in torment, but a whole family (and consequently an ancient Greek society) at war with itself, with the stakes being each character’s sanity and existence.
A DOLL'S HOUSE, PART 2
Written by Lucas Hnath
Directed by Jamie Angell
Stage Managed by Avery Jones
What happens when there’s a knock on the door Nora slammed 15 years ago? Having left behind her domestic “prison” to become an independent self-actualized woman, Nora is now forced to return in order to finish what she started. Lucas Hnath's A Doll’s House, Part 2 stays true to the characters Ibsen created while contemporaneously investigating the meaning and underlying impulses behind Nora’s slammed door.
STUDENT PROJECTS
The Fairy Who Cried Gems
Created and performed by Lily Abha Cratsley '23
April 14 & 15 at 8:00pm at Keck 208
The Fairy Who Cried Gems is a cross-cultural, sometimes verbatim folk-tale, memoir, and celebration of identity, created and performed by Lily Abha Cratsley. She serves as a storyteller, employing dialogue, music, and movement to transport the audience through the oral histories of Desi American women. Through this piece, Lily explores her contradicting identities and discovers how Desi joy can be built out of legacies of trauma.
It Could Have Been Enough
A new play by Zachary Goldsmith '24
March 3 & 5 at 7:30pm behind Keck Theater
Rachel and Asher host their first Passover Seder at their new house, much to Rachel’s chagrin. But when Asher’s friends reveal a surprise Seder in the park, Rachel wants to stop it before there is any potential for a dangerous encounter. Desperate, she accepts the help of the Wicked Son, whose vile plan unleashes the ten plagues onto the house.
How far would someone go to run away from their identity? How can we balance trauma and joy? It Could Have Been Enough investigates what it means to be a Jewish young adult in 2022-2023.
NEW WORKS FESTIVAL
Produced by Zachary Goldsmith '24, Haowen Luo '24 and Laural Meade
For more than 20 years, the Occidental New Works Festival has paired student playwrights and actors with professional guest directors and performers. Focused on writer-centric rehearsal and performance, the festival provides a real-world experience of new play development as it is practiced in major theaters around the country.
The Plays & Schedule | Playwrights | Producers
The Plays & Schedule
All performances are in Keck Theater and admission is free
Saturday, February 25, 2023
7:00pm
a double-bill
Clock Out by Jonah Matso '24
Directed by Aly Mawji
Some restaurant kitchens are calm, cool, collected. Not this one - it’s hot, chaotic and congested - with tensions on the boil. A diverse crew of characters each clock in with a different agenda. A server looking to be redeemed… or distracted. A cook looking for freedom, with nowhere to turn. A chef with big expectations, and an even bigger god complex. They’d drive each other crazy… if they didn’t have to beat the dinner rush.
Emergency Contact by Wren Andres '24
Directed by Jer Adrienne Lelliott
A childhood bedroom in the suburban midwest, a dorm room at a west coast school, one long car ride home. Across time and distance, Jamie and Noah find a home in one another. Together, they dream of the world they want to create. Apart, they struggle to hold on to themselves and each other. Emergency Contact explores the intersection of queer friendship and learning how to love when you are just finding your footing.
Sunday, February 26, 2023
2:00pm
Center of the World by Amber-Lee Davison '26
Directed by Jessica Hanna
Bob Hanks, son of Tom Hanks (yes, that Tom Hanks), always seems to get everything he wants - especially in his acting endeavors. But a major event causes him to question what’s behind his endless success. Is he as rare and talented as he thinks he is - the real Center of the World around which others can only orbit - or does he just suffer from a severe case of nepotism-itis?
7:00pm
El Corazón de la Luna by Joaquín Madrid Larrañaga '23
Directed by Israel López Reyes
As teen-ager Martín grapples with terrifying dreams, his father’s death, and a strange magical woman named Estrella, he never could have imagined falling in love. But when a cute boy shows up in his Catholic confirmation class, he must come to terms with his own homophobia. In this queer coming-of-age story - that is also an ode to Albuquerque, New Mexico - love, religion, and magic take center stage.
Playwrights
Wren Andres '24
Wren Andres is a Theater major in their junior year at Oxy and honored to be in this years New Works Festival. Wren is a long-time performer, first-time playwright with a fierce love of their home both the people and the places. His first play Emergency Contact is ‘a love letter to queer love and friendships.'
Amber-Lee Davison '26
I’m Amber, and I’m thrilled to be one of the playwrights for this year’s festival. I’m a freshman, but even before that I’ve been interested in Oxy’s theater department. So, to be able to create a piece for them is an amazing opportunity that I’m grateful to experience in my college journey. I’m looking forward to working with my talented cast + my director to bring my play to life!
Joaquín Madrid Larrañaga '23
Joaquín Madrid Larrañaga is a senior computer science major and a theater and performance studies minor. Born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Joaquín has been performing, directing, and producing productions since he was 5 years old. Though he's a performer at heart, Joaquín is excited to present his first original play El Corazón de la Luna, which aims to be an ode to the beauty of New Mexico, while also tackling issues of homosexuality, catholicism, curanderismo, and coming of age. You can learn more about Joaquín on his website at www.joaquinml.com
Jonah Matso '24
Producers
Zachary Goldsmith '24
This is Zach’s first year producing the New Works Festival, and he is very excited for you to see these wonderful plays! Zach (he/him/his) is a junior Theater & Performance Studies and Urban & Environmental Policy double major from Portland, Oregon. A writer, actor, and producer, Zach loves telling relevant and innovative stories and creating/supporting new work. Enjoy the festival, everybody!
Haowen Luo '24
Support was provided by the Edgerton Foundation, Academic Student Project Awards from Occidental College, and Omar's Cookie Jar.