Clark College Theatre presents its spring show, “Technical Difficulties” on June 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10 in the Decker Theatre^* in Frost Arts Center. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are free for Clark College students, faculty, and staff with college ID. General admissions, $12; senior citizens, $10.  Tickets can be purchased at the Clark College Bookstore website: www.clarkbookstore.com

About the show 

“Technical Difficulties” is a collection of socially distant shorts that tap into the delights and frustrations of staying connected. It is designed to be performed on the internet as well as on stage.  

The shorts are directed by Clark College Theatre alums Kyra Sanford, Seven Tempest Fairy, Patricia Murphy, Linda Owsley, Travis Beagley, and Theo Harrison and Dr. Gene Biby, a Clark College drama professor.  

Below are titles, playwrights, directors and summaries of the shorts: 

“Oyster” by Elaine Romero. Directed by Clark Theater alum Kyra Sanford.  

The plot: Marisela negotiates a potential opportunity in a border world where kids live in government cages and being bilingual comes at a price.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Intro to Fiction (Virtual)” by Ken Urban. Directed by Clark Theater alum Seven Tempest Fairy.  

The plot: During office hours, a professor discusses his student’s short story. When her characters feel too close for comfort for the professor, teacher and student must reckon with how to write a good ending.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Black in Blue” by Aurin Squire. Directed by Clark Theater alum Patricia Murphy and Clark Theatre Professor H. Gene Biby.  

The plot: After one act of police brutality too many, one man decides to do something. But in trying to get “street justice,” he threatens his life, his brother, and his job.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Looking Back” by Arlene Hutton. Directed by Clark Theater alum Linda Owsley.  

The plot: Kath was the last visitor to leave a major theme park before the pandemic lockdown. While reminiscing about life pre-Covid, two roommates challenge each other’s ideas of what truly makes a person happy.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Artful” by C. Quintana. Directed by Clark Theater alum Travis Beagley.  

The plot: In the wake of her ex-husband’s departure, Taani logs on to a Metropolitan Museum of Art webinar. Suddenly in conversation with the art itself, she finds the event is more personal than she ever could have imagined.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Boredom, Fear and Wine” by Craig Pospisil. Directed by Clark Theater alum Theo Harrison. 

The plot: When you’re stuck at home during a pandemic, everything happens online— even therapy. Harper is suffering and can’t reconcile feelings about the terrifying disease with the monotony of lockdown. Jess tries to be sympathetic, but the session goes off the rails.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

“Telephones with Cords” by Mashuq Mushtaq Deen. Directed by Clark Theater alum Kyra Sanford.  

The plot: Bozz and Banjo, best friends and fellow puppets, are feeling the separation of a Zoom existence. Frustrated, Bozz wants to talk by phone, and Banjo can’t help but sense their friend’s growing existential despair. Usually the optimist, even Banjo begins to wonder about the hands at work in their lives.  

View playwright’s bio here. 

_{*Please enter Frost Arts Center through the front entrance, go through the lobby and into the exterior courtyard to the theatre entrance.} 

In theatre, they say, timing is everything. And now, at long last, the timing is right to bring back live dramatic productions to Clark College. After moving to remote operation due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the Clark College Theatre Department returns to in-person performances at Decker Theatre, with a collection of one-act plays running March 10-12.

“We are elated to return to live theatre,” says Theatre department chair Dr. Gene Biby. “After nearly a two-year hiatus, our students are thrilled to be rehearsing and performing once again. This production is six sketches that include a cast and crew composed of current and former Clark College students.”

All in the Timing is a collection of six one-act plays written by David Ives. Winner of the John Gassner Playwrighting Award, the collection has been described by the New York Times as “like sketches for some hilarious, celestially conceived revue. The writing is not only very funny, it has density of thought and precision of poetry.”

All in the Timing runs March 10, 11 & 12 in the Decker Theater, on Clark College’s main campus. Visit www.clark.edu/maps for maps and directions. All performances are at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $5 and tickets can be purchased through the Clark College Bookstore. Seats will be assigned upon arrival. Social distancing and mask requirements are in effect for these performances.

This show contains adult themes, language, and content and is recommended for a mature audience.

Full cast and crew

Sure Thing 

• Directed by Linda Owsley
• Cast:  Andrew Poletto and Dani Neblock                                                               

Words, Words, Words 

• Directed by Sterling Buck
• Cast:  Neil Wade Freer, Colby Conerly, and Lizzy Swanson

Variations on the Death of Trotsky 

• Directed by Travis Beagley
• Cast: Sterling Buck, Ariel Huntley, and Andrew Poletto

The Philadelphia 

• Directed by Lila Soelberg
• Cast: Andrew York, Brenden Kinnee, and Madison Harris

The Universal Language 

• Directed by Autumn Fivecoats
• Cast:  Lizzy Swanson, Neil Wade Freer, and Vic Paxman

English Made Simple 

• Directed by Dani Neblock
• Cast:  Ariel Huntley, Vic Paxman, and Corey Harper

Shelly Williams contributed to this article.

Clark College Theatre continues its 2019-2020 season with the musical Bare by Jon Hartmere and Damon Intrabartolo.

Bare is a coming-of-age rock musical that
features a group of high school seniors at a Catholic boarding school who face
issues of sexuality and personal identity. As they struggle to come to terms
with who they are, and who the world thinks they should be, they seek answers
from their church, their friends, and ultimately, from within themselves.

The cast for Clark College’s production includes *Kloe Catchpole, *Sandra Fachial, Pearson Kunz, *Siniva Lee, *Kaila Ludvigson, *Sebastian Miranda-Givens, Aidan Nolan, **Linda Owsley, **Jared Pengra, *Laurence Sinclair, *Trinity Stegall, *Derek Slade Tucker, *Dea Whitley, **Sammy Williams, and *Natalie Worthy:  The director is H. Gene Biby and April Brookins Duvic provides vocal direction. Note: Cast member names marked with a single asterisk are current Clark College students; double asterisks indicate Clark College alumni.

Show Dates: February 21, 22, 28, 29 and March 5-7. All show
times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark
College’s main campus.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with
membership) $10; Senior Citizens $16; General Admission $20. Tickets may be
purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp
or call 360-992-2815. View the entire Clark College Theatre season at www.clark.edu/cc/theatre.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Gaiser Hall room 137, as soon as possible.

Clark College Theatre starts its 2019-2020 season with A Bright New Boise by Samuel D. Hunter.

Winner of the 2011 Obie Award for Playwrighting
and nominated for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, A Bright New Boise is a darkly funny examination of American
religion set in the staff room of an Idaho Hobby Lobby. Will, who has fled his
rural hometown after a scandal at his Evangelical church, comes to the Hobby
Lobby, not only for employment, but also to rekindle a relationship with Alex,
his brooding teenage son. Alex works there along with Leroy, his adopted
brother and protector, and Anna, a hapless young woman who reads bland fiction
but hopes for dramatic endings. As their manager, foul-mouthed Pauline, tries
ceaselessly to find order (and profit) in the chaos of small business, these
lost souls of the Hobby Lobby confront an unyielding world through the
beige-tinted impossibility of modern faith.

This
production’s cast includes: E
Andres Houseman as Will, Linda Owsley as Pauline, Corinne Stephens as Anna,
Keegan Harrison as Leroy, and Brenden Kinnee as Alex. The show is directed by
Mark Owsley.

This show contains adult themes,
language, and content.

Show Dates: November 15, 16, 21, 22, and 23. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus. Maps and directions are available at www.clark.edu/maps.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID)
$10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $12; General Admission $15.
Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation
due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark
College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901
(VP), or visit Penguin Union Building room 013, as soon as possible.

Clark College Theatre finishes its 2018-2019 season with Proof by David Auburn.

Winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award for Best Play, Proof is an emotional examination of the relationship between genius and mental illness. On the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday, Catherine, a troubled young woman, has spent years caring for her brilliant but unstable father, a famous mathematician. Now, following his death, she must deal with her own volatile emotions; the arrival of her estranged sister, Claire; and the attentions of Hal, a former student of her fathers who hopes to find valuable work in the 103 notebooks that her father left behind. Over the long weekend that follows, a burgeoning romance and the discovery of a mysterious notebook draw Catherine into the most difficult problem of all: How much of her father’s madness—or genius—will she inherit?

This production’s cast includes: Kelli English as Catherine; Patti Tipton as Claire; Ryan Larson as Hal; Dan Haggerty as Robert. The director is Zak Campbell.

This show contains adult themes, language, and content.

View additional photos of “Proof” on Flickr.

Show Dates: May 17, 18, 23, 24, and 25. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus. Maps and directions are available at www.clark.edu/maps.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $12; General Admission $15. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Penguin Union Building room 013, as soon as possible.

Clark College Theatre continues its 2018-2019 season with the 2012 revamped version of the musical Godspell.

Godspell 2012 is a masterful retelling of the original musical sensation, injected with contemporary references and dazzling new arrangements. It was the first major musical theatre offering from three-time Grammy and Academy Award winner Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Pippin, Children of Eden), and it took the world by storm. A small group of people help Jesus Christ tell different parables by using a wide variety of games, storytelling techniques, and a hefty dose of comic timing. An eclectic blend of songs, ranging in style from pop to vaudeville, is employed as the story of Jesus’ life dances across the stage.

The cast includes: Jacqueline Baxter, Andrew Hallas, Sammy Williams*, Breanna Kurth, Christina Taft**, Moe Lewis, Danielle Neblock*, Michelle Eussen **, Colin Smith* and Janoah Stegall*. The director is H. Gene Biby and April Brookins Duvic provides vocal direction. Note: Cast member names marked with a single asterisk are current Clark College students; double asterisks indicate Clark College alumni.

Show Dates: Feb. 22 and 23, March 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $16; General Admission $20. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815. View the entire Clark College Theatre season at www.clark.edu/cc/theatre.

For more photos of the show, visit Clark’s Flickr album.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Gaiser Hall room 137, as soon as possible.

Clark College Theatre begins its 2018-2019 season with The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl.

A 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist, The Clean House is a romantic comedy about loss, love, change, and redemption. A career-oriented doctor has hired a quirky Brazilian maid who hates to clean and instead longs to be a comedienne. The doctor is deserted by her husband, who leaves her for his mistress, a passionate, older woman upon whom he recently performed a mastectomy. Sarah Ruhl’s play reminds us that there is humor and beauty to be found in life’s most unlikely messes.

This production’s cast includes:  Danielle Neblock, Becky Morin, Amy Baldwin, Kyle Reese, and Dee Harris.  The director is Mark Owsley. With the exception of Dee Harris, who is an employee of Clark College, all cast members are current students.

This show contains adult themes, language, and content.

Show Dates: November 9, 10, 15, 16, and 17. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus. Maps and directions are available at www.clark.edu/maps.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $12; General Admission $15. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Penguin Union Building room 013, as soon as possible.

Lydia Fleming and Sterling Buck star in Clark College’s production of “The Shape of Things.”

Clark College Theatre continues its 2017-2018 season with The Shape of Things by Neil Labute.

A dark tale of what people will do for love and art, the story revolves around four college students whose lives are inalterably changed when two of them become involved romantically. At first, Adam is flattered when attractive art student Evelyn takes an interest in him. But complications ensue as Evelyn begins to exert more and more influence over Adam’s appearance and behavior.

“In the play, Evelyn talks about the subjectivity of art; how different people can come away with different feelings from the same thing,” writes director Ted Jonathan Gold in his program notes. “While there are many ways to make what some consider good or provocative art, I believe art makes you feel something. Sometimes it makes you feel a way you didn’t expect or want to feel. I believe that if you leave the theatre and you feel nothing and the play fades quickly, then you did not witness true art. My hope for this production is that you leave having experienced good art that sticks with you. I hope you leave affected, whether you enjoy that feeling or not.”

First staged in 2001, the play was made into a film featuring the original cast in 2003.

This production’s cast includes: Lydia Fleming**, Sterling Buck*, Stevie Riepe*, and Olga Gula*. Note: Cast member names marked with a single asterisk are current Clark College students; double asterisks indicate Clark College alumni.

This show contains adult themes, language, and content.

Show Dates: May 18, 19, 24, 25, and 26. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $12; General Admission $15. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Gaiser Hall room 137, as soon as possible.

Photo: Jenny Shadley/Clark College. More photos can be found on our Flickr page.

Clark College Theatre continues its 2017-2018 season with the classic 1960s musical Hair.

This vibrant, trippy product of the hippie counterculture and sexual revolution features several songs that became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement. With book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot, Hairbroke new ground in musical theatre by defining the genre of “rock musical.” It tells the story of the “tribe,” a group of politically active, long-haired hippies of the “Age of Aquarius” living a bohemian life in New York City.

The cast includes: Andrew Hallas, Jared Pengra, Tim Busch**, Zak Campbell**, Sammy Williams*, Breanna Kurth, Danielle Plesser, Kate Cummings, Christina Taft**, Moe Lewis, Tristan Colo**, Linda Owsley**, Ryan Larson*, Haley Phillips*. The director is Gene Biby and April Duvic provides vocal direction. (Note: Cast member names marked with a single asterisk are current Clark College students; double asterisks indicate Clark College alumni.)

Sets were decorated by the Clark Art Club.

Although the show premiered in 1968, it contains adult themes, language, and content. Brief nudity does occur. For more photos of the show, visit Clark’s Flickr album.

Show Dates: Feb. 23 and 24, March 2, 3, 8, 9, and 10. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $16; General Admission $20. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Gaiser Hall room 137, as soon as possible.

Photos: Clark College/Jenny Shadley

Clark College Theatre opens its 2017-2018 season with A View from the Bridge.

Arthur Miller, who wrote Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, brings us this classic tragedy of life, love, and loss. Brooklyn longshoreman Eddie Carbone welcomes his immigrant cousins to America, but when one of them falls for Eddie’s young niece, Eddie’s jealous mistrust exposes an unspeakable secret—one that drives him to commit the ultimate betrayal.

Cast includes: JD Carpenter* (Louis); Aron Howell** (Alfieri); Zak Cambell** (Eddie); Sammantha Williams* (Catherine); Christina Taft** (Beatrice); Sterling Buck* (Marco); Austin Woodard* (Tony); Stevie Riepe* (Rodolpho); Liam Arthur* (First Immigration Officer); and Alex Pearman* (Second Immigration Officer).  The director is Mark Owsley. Note: Cast member names marked with a single asterisk are current Clark College students; double asterisks indicate Clark College alumni.

Show Dates: Nov. 10, 11, 16, 17, and 18. All show times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Decker Theatre, Frost Arts Center, on Clark College’s main campus.

Ticket Information: Students (with ID) $10; Alumni (with membership) $10; Senior Citizens $12; General Admission $15. Season ticket packages are also available. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.clarkbookstore.com/site_theatre.asp, or call 360-992-2815.

If you need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event, contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at 360-992-2314 or 360-991-0901 (VP), or visit Gaiser Hall room 137, as soon as possible.