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365 Days/365 Plays (One Act)

Our Second Show of the Season Presented Virtually February 9 – 13, 2021

In November 2002, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks decided to write a play a day for a year. From this incredible collection, entitled 365 Days/365 Plays, thirty-one selections will be performed by the Acting III: Honours class and directed by faculty member Hope McIntyre from February 9 – 13. 

365 Plays/365 Days (One Act) is a buffet of short plays exploring a range of themes and ideas, which together form a celebration of the act of writing.  As director McIntyre says, “Theatre is all about a connection in time and space.  These pieces explore human connection, communication, and a rewriting of history; all the while using humour as well as pop culture parody.”

Parks is an American playwright, screenwriter, musician and novelist. Her play Topdog/Underdog won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002, and she was the first African American woman to achieve this honour for drama.  Her writing is a journey of discovery with rich language and symbols and metaphors that allow us to examine preconceived notions.

The University of Winnipeg production features set and lighting design by faculty member Adam Parboosingh and costume designs by student Kate George.  All technical work is done by both junior and senior production students.

Following strict health and safety protocols, the nine-member cast will perform in a socially-distanced manner from the stage in the Asper Centre for Theatre and Film, supported by UW Production students following the same protocols.

Although performed live by the ensemble, audiences will be tuning in from offsite to safely watch the livestream.

365 Days/365 Plays (One Act) livestreams Tuesday, February 9 through Friday, February 13 at 7:30 pm each evening. Everyone is welcome to tune in to view the live performance from the comfort of their own homes via a private YouTube channel.  Admission is free but reservations are required to receive the link, which may be used to view the live stream on your smart phone, laptop, tablet, computer or smart TV on the date specified only. 

Content warning: Strong language, discussion of war and violence.

365 Days/365 Plays Play & Cast List

365 Days / 365 Plays (One-Act)

by Suzan-Lori Parks

(for production credits and notes, please see Show Credits and Director's Note)

 

PLAYS

 

What Do You See

Speaker 1 – Zanifa Rasool

Speaker 2 – Marysa Fosty

Speaker 3 – Isla Shea

Speaker 4 – Samantha Hutchings

Speaker 5 – Keith Jaeger

Speaker 6 – Laurel Fife

Speaker 7 – Anita Molinari

Speaker 8 – Willow Harvey

Lonesome Person – Haeln Gebre

 

Selling Out

Copper – Haeln Gebre

Joyce – Zanifa Rasool

Charley – Laurel Fife

Woman – Marysa Fosty

Man – Isla Shea

 

Scatter

Ginger – Samantha Hutchings

Mac – Willow Harvey

 

The Boss of Everything

Most Senior – Anita Molinari

Second Senior – Haeln Gebre

Third Senior – Willow Harvey

Fourth Senior – Isla Shea

Boss – Keith Jaeger

Astronomer – Samantha Hutchings

Bear – Zanifa Rasool

Group of Folks – Laurel Fife, Marysa Fosty

 

Star Search

Boss – Keith Jaeger

Bear – Zanifa Rasool

Headman – Marysa Fosty

Older Woman – Laurel Fife

Mother – Isla Shea

 

Play (Condemned Version)

Writer – Willow Harvey

X-Con – Marysa Fosty

Woman – Laurel Fife

 

(Again) Perfect

Woman – Laurel Fife

Timer – Haeln Gebre

 

Fine Animal

Princess – Haeln Gebre

Hag – Willow Harvey

Prince – Keith Jaeger

 

Veuve Clicquot

The Condemned – Marysa Fosty

Waiter – Laurel Fife

Murdered Women – Haeln Gebre, Willow Harvey, Samantha Hutchings, Anita Molinari,

Zanifa Rasool, Isla Shea

 

Hole

Man – Willow Harvey

Woman – Laurel Fife

 

The Executioner’s Daughter

Guard – Isla Shea

Executioner (Mother) – Zanifa Rasool

Prisoner (Daughter) – Haeln Gebre

 

Fries With That

1st Woman – Marysa Fosty

2nd Woman – Willow Harvey

Man – Keith Jaeger

 

Jaywalking

1 – Haeln Gebre

2 – Marysa Fosty

 

Mother Comes Home From the Wars

Man – Zanifa Rasool

Woman – Samantha Hutchings

 

Roll Out the Red Carpet

Dolly – Anita Molinari

Bertie – Willow Harvey

 

The Legend of Wilgefortis

King – Anita Molinari

Servant – Isla Shea

Servant with Bag – Haeln Gebre

Herald – Keith Jaeger

Timely Servant – Laurel Fife

Prince – Zanifa Rasool

Other servants – Marysa Fosty, Willow Harvey, Samantha Hutchings

 

If I Had to Murder Me Somebody

Speaker – Isla Shea

 

Dragon Song

Narrator – Keith Jaeger

Jane – Samantha Hutchings

Dragon – Isla Shea

The Wits – Laurel Fife, Marysa Fosty, Haeln Gebre, Willow Harvey, Anita Molinari, Zanifa Rasool

 

The Carpet Cleaner on Pearl Harbor Day

Carpet Cleaner – Samantha Hutchings

Dolly – Anita Molinari

Bertie – Willow Harvey

 

Photos with Santa

Santa – Keith Jaeger

Elf – Anita Molinari

Woman – Zanifa Rasool

 

(Again) Groundhog (for Sova)

Lady – Samantha Hutchings

Shadow – Laurel Fife

 

Revolver Lover

Man – Willow Harvey

Woman – Zanifa Rasool

Another Man – Keith Jaeger

 

Proust’s Cookie

Cookie – Haeln Gebre

Man – Anita Molinari

Another Man – Laurel Fife

 

Coney Island Joe’s

Lonesome Man – Keith Jaeger

Pretty Waitress – Samantha Hutchings

Short Order Cook – Haeln Gebre

Ukulele – Willow Harvey

Customers – Zanifa Rasool, Isla Shea

 

Bonanza

Well-to-do-Cowboy – Willow Harvey

Cowboy 1 – Isla Shea

Cowboy 2 – Marysa Fosty

 

Two Marys

1st Woman – Laurel Fife

2nd Woman – Isla Shea

Man’s Voice – Keith Jaeger

 

All I Can Say Is Thank You

Writer – Zanifa Rasool

Actor – Haeln Gebre

 

Decoy

Woman – Samantha Hutchings

Man – Haeln Gebre

Head Wiper – Zanifa Rasool

2nd Wiper – Laurel Fife

3rd Wiper – Keith Jaeger

Other Woman – Isla Shea

 

Goodbye New York

Woman – Marysa Fosty

Man – Anita Molinari

Old Man – Keith Jaeger

 

The Plane on the Runway at 6 a.m.

Stewardess – Samantha Hutchings

Other Flight Attendants – Laurel Fife, Haeln Gebre, Anita Molinari, Zanifa Rasool, Isla Shea

Passengers – Marysa Fosty, Keith Jaeger, Willow Harvey

365 Days/365 Plays Show Credits and Director's Note

The University of Winnipeg Department of Theatre and Film presents

365 Days/365 Plays (One-Act)

by Suzan-Lori Parks

 

ARTISTIC STAFF

Director...................................................................................................... Hope McIntyre

Scenic and Lighting Design...................................................................... Adam Parboosingh

Costume Design............................................................................................. Kate George

Movement Coach / Instructor............................................................................ Tom Stroud

Scenic Painter ........................................................................................ Stephanie Porrior

Text & Vocal Coach / Voice & Speech Instructor.............................................Shannon Vickers

Assistant to the Lighting Designer.................................................................Joshua Gehman

Dance Captain.................................................................................... Samantha Hutchings

Stage Manager............................................................................................... Devon Helm

 

CAST

Laurel Fife, Marysa Fosty, Haeln Gebre, Willow Harvey, Samantha Hutchings,

Keith Jaeger, Anita Molinari, Zanifa Rasool, Isla Shea

(for a cast list by play, please see Play and Cast List)

 

PRODUCTION STAFF

Head Electrician....................................................................................... Denise Dela Cruz

Head of Sound............................................................................................ Paramvir Singh

Wardrobe Coordinator................................................................................... Julia Anderson

Props Coordinators...................................................................Bennette Villones, Amy Wood

Production Assistant / Assistant Electrician .................................................... Liam Dutiaume

Deck Sound............................................................................................. Zambia Pankratz

House Managers .................................................................... David Lange, Anna Verbytska

 

 

CARPENTERS & PAINT CREW

Anika Binding, Jenna Brown, Evan King, Amber Reimer, Alexander Wuersch

 

ELECTRICIANS & LIGHT WALKERS

Julia Anderson, Liam Dutiaume, Evan King, Zambia Pankratz, Paramvir Singh, Bennette Villones

 

VIDEO TEAM

Floor Director: Tori Popp

Operators: Jenn Bahniuk, Jenna Brown, Katie Robinson Hoppa

 

FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF WINNIPEG

Department Chair................................................................................... Christopher Brauer

Poster and Layout....................................................................................... Danielle Friesen

Master Carpenter / Production Instructor............................................................. Aaron Frost

Production Coordinator / Production Instructor .................................................... Allison Loat

Scenic Design Instructor.......................................................................... Adam Parboosingh

Stage Management Instructor.................................................................. Melissa Novecosky

Costumer..................................................................................................... Lauren Martin

Assistant to the Master Carpenter ............................................................... Khaeler Bautista

Assistant to the Production Coordinator............................................................... Colin Wiens

 

Running time:  approximately 90 minutes without intermission

CONTENT WARNING:  Strong language, discussion of war and violence.

The video and/or audio recording of this performance by any means whatsoever is strictly prohibited.

 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Prairie Theatre Exchange, Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre

I.A.T.S.E. Local 63 for its continuing support of our Production students

“365 Days/365 Plays (One-Act)” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This production was written by an American playwright whose writing is often steeped in the reality of being a black person in the U.S.  It is about reclaiming history and writing a new way forward.  We present this work on Treaty 1 Territory, the traditional lands of the Anishinabe, Ininew, Oji-Cree, Dene, and Dakota, and the Birthplace of the Métis Nation.  We acknowledge the harms done on this land and the need to educate ourselves and others about this truth in order to address systemic racism.

DIRECTOR'S NOTE

Here we are at a time when we cannot come together, connect, or gather in the theatre. This show is a real celebration of who we are as artists and the privilege we have to create and tell stories. These students have chosen to study theatre. Putting a show together is a necessary part of that experience, even if it means having our audience in a different space.

365 Days/365 Plays was written by Suzan-Lori Parks in 2002/2003 when she set herself the challenge of writing a play a day for a year. She was often responding to the events around her at the time, but so much of it echoes with the here and now. Her writing was about being present and being committed to the artistic process every single day.

“…it is revealing community where it already exists – in theaters both grand and modest, in schoolrooms, storefronts, nursing homes, and alleyways. Theater touches the lives of thousands of people across the country each day.” – Suzan-Lori Parks

Our cast of students selected 31 of the 365 plays and also chose the roles they wanted to tackle. Initial rehearsals were on-line as we delved in to the writing. We then moved in person for the last few weeks. We have relished every moment of it.

In a socially isolated world, it was exciting to work with Parks’ mini plays. She has said that traditional play structures could never accommodate the figures which take up residence inside her. Instead she writes drama of accumulation. It is like a kaleidoscope written by a poet. There are echoes of absurdism, surrealism, heartbreaking reality and resistance text meant to transform. Jodi Van Der Horn-Gibson says that Parks’ writing is about who owns history. It is a process of untelling what we think of the past in the present while forecasting new possibilities into the future. Parks’ writing is a journey of discovery with rich language and symbols and metaphors that allow us to examine preconceived notions.

It is also imagination, creativity, and THEATRE in all its glory. I’m grateful to the students both onstage and off who put their own creativity in to this project, despite having to work in a whole new way. We need art and artists more than ever right now to help process the world we live in, and more importantly envision the world we want to live in.

Hope McIntyre

 

Please join us for our next production:

BLINK

by Phil Porter

March 30 – April 3, 2021

Watch for information and online reservations in March at our website:

theatre.uwinnipeg.ca OR film.uwinnipeg.ca