Student-run plays have always been the standard at Asbury University. One of this year’s productions, “Mockingbird,” directed by senior Morgan Owen, is about a young girl named Caitlin who falls on the autism spectrum. The play follows Caitlin as she and her family and friends navigate her brother’s sudden death.
“This experience has been unlike anything I could have imagined,” said Owen. “Going into the semester, I knew that the process was going to be difficult, but I was ready to face the challenge head-on.”
Due to COVID-19, Owen had to shift her original vision to fit safety guidelines.
“Some of the biggest challenges we had all stemmed from COVID-19 in a way,” said Owen. “The COVID-19 restrictions changed many ways I was originally planning on blocking the show. The virus also made the need for understudies much higher and it became much more important to have people in place to take over the actor’s roles if something were to happen. The shortened semester also made schedules much more packed, making rehearsals difficult to plan.”
Though Owen has found many aspects of the directing process difficult this year, her style of directing still shines through the finished production.
“I have always loved playing with visuals,” said Owen, “so I have taken several scenes and physicalized the emotion of the scene in order to add an extra texture to the story. I also wanted to keep a consistent flow throughout the play as the audience follows Caitlin on her journey.”
This is not Owen’s first rodeo as director; last spring, she wrote and directed a 10-minute play for the 10-minute play festival entitled “Ashes.”
“That was a unique experience because I had never directed before and I was directing a piece that I wrote,” said Owen. “My favorite aspect of directing is collaborating with the actors to bring life to an image and story.”
For senior Rachel Lister, who plays the character Josie in the production, the process has been enjoyable.
“After doing Shrek! the musical for SOMU, I loved the theater experience and I knew I wanted to do another one before I graduated,” said Lister. “When I heard that Morgan—who was also in Shrek!—was directing, I knew this was a great show to participate in.”
Lister also added that the production touches on some important topics in a fun and even sometimes humorous way.
“I am super excited to perform the show that we have spent so many hours working on,” said Lister, “and although there are some hard topics explored in it, the show still has fun moments and the audience will definitely experience a rollercoaster of emotions!”
Students can watch the show at the Greathouse Theater. Performance dates are Nov. 5-7 at 7:30 p.m., and Nov. 7 at 2:00 p.m.
