Theatre UAB will present “The Wolves,” a 2016 play by Sarah DeLappe with an all-women cast, Nov. 13-16 and Nov. 20-23.
From the safety of their suburban stretch circle, a girls’ indoor soccer team navigates big questions and wages tiny battles with all the vim and vigor of a pack of adolescent warriors. It is a portrait of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for nine American girls who just want to score some goals. “The Wolves” was a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for drama.
Theatre UAB is the performance company of the University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Theatre.
Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13-16 and Nov. 20-22, and at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23, in UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, Odess Theatre. Tickets are $15, $6 for students, and $10 for UAB employees and senior citizens. For tickets, call 205-975-2787 or visit AlysStephens.org.
By setting the girls in an environment where they are not being evaluated or scrutinized by adults or boys, “The Wolves” allows us to experience a fresh aspect of young women that is not typically explored, says Camilla Almond, a musical theater major who is the student director for the production, advised by Professor Karla Koskinen.
“With girls’ engaging with fellow girls, the audience sees a different side of female youth, which we rarely see displayed within theater, getting to eavesdrop on uncensored, private and curious teenage conversation,” Almond said.
The show is framed within the athletic lens of soccer, a unisex sport. Played by any gender, soccer is known to be one of the more aggressive and physically demanding sports. Author DeLappe gives the team the title of The Wolves — ferocious animals found in packs, where each member has a purpose, and together they become a collective force, Almond says.
“By having the girls discuss a vast span of world topics, DeLappe emphasizes the distance between teenage experience and the rest of the world,” Almond said. “She does this within an honest, raw and authentic dialogue exchange, through a portrayal in which we truly believe their every word.”
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By setting the girls in an environment where they are not being evaluated or scrutinized by adults or boys, “The Wolves” allows us to experience a fresh aspect of young women that is not typically explored, says student director Camilla Almond, a musical theater major. “With girls’ engaging with fellow girls, the audience sees a different side of female youth, which we rarely see displayed within theater, getting to eavesdrop on uncensored, private and curious teenage conversation,” Almond said. |
Within the first moments of this show, an onlooker can quickly aggregate a knowing stereotype of each player on the field, Almond says. However, these stereotypes are splintered and disintegrate throughout the show to remind an audience of the complexities and varieties found within young women.
The cast is Briana Hernandez of El Paso, Texas, as #14; Tess Lenzen of Madison, Wisconsin, as #25; Rachel-Kate McGee of Birmingham as #7; Cappy Elvir of New Orleans, Louisiana, as #46; Gabriella Henry of Navarre, Florida, as #8; Briana Scott of Birmingham as #13; Ashleigh Meeks of Huntsville, Alabama, as #00; Kara Scullin of Cincinnati, Ohio, as #11; Norah Madden of Los Angeles, California, as #2; and Head of Musical Theatre and Associate Professor Valerie Accetta, MFA, as Soccer Mom. Understudies for the show are Peyton Overstreet of Tallahassee, Florida, who is also an assistant director for the production; Jasmin Watson of Madison, Alabama; and Logan Franke of Tampa, Florida.
The crew includes stage manager Anna Whitlock of Alabaster; assistant stage managers David Parker of Birmingham and Sadie Sue Long of Vestavia; sound operator Diego Villanueva of Katy, Texas; light operator Ryan Charest of Tampa, Florida; head dresser Anna Frey of Oneonta, Alabama; dresser Justine Nelson of St. Petersburg, Florida; and running crew Matthew Kelly of Phenix City, Alabama. Soccer coach for the production is Bree Windham of Birmingham. Designers for the production are Associate Professor Kimberly Schnormeier, MFA, set and costumes designer; Lew Williams of Scottsboro, Alabama, student lighting designer; Alyssa Wilke of Chicago, Illinois, student sound designer; and Allie Nichols of Tupelo, Mississippi, student props master.