An intimate new theater at 4 Currier Place will feature plays, puppetry, and inventive performances in the coming months, including , the fall 鈥�23 MainStage production, which opens this weekend.
Theater on Currier is among the ever-growing array of and beyond that are showcasing Dartmouth events while the undergoes renovation and expansion.
With a flexible stage layout, lighting to match, and bleacher-style seating for just 65 people, 鈥渋t鈥檚 a legit little black box theater,鈥� says , the Hop鈥檚 managing director and executive producer.
Black box theaters are typically small, simple performance spaces鈥攐ften painted black鈥攖hat allow for flexible set, seating, and lighting designs.
And that makes it a perfect space for Lost Girl, an 鈥渋ntrospective鈥� show by Kimberly Belflower, says Julia Zichy 鈥�27, who plays the lead.
A coming-of-age story chronicling the life of Wendy Darling in the years following her adventures with Peter Pan, the show is set in Wendy鈥檚 childhood bedroom.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a very intimate space, so you can be very vulnerable, and there鈥檚 no need to over- exaggerate your movements because the audience can see perfectly,鈥� Zichy says. Theater is about connecting with an audience, 鈥渁nd I get to tell them my story, the story of Wendy, which is, I guess, our little secret for that hour and a half.鈥�
Formerly home to offices鈥攊ncluding, at one time, the , the theater was designed by the Department of Theater and built over the course of several months by the department鈥檚 production staff, says , department chair. The crew, who wrapped up the work in late June, 鈥渄id just an astoundingly good job,鈥� she says.
So far, Theater on Currier has been used for a Theater Department open house, readings of student plays, and a New York Theatre Workshop event.
And come winter, it will be the setting for a specially designed Theater Department production.
鈥淭he history of cabaret is to take politically relevant topics and do an intimate house show with a variety of types of performance,鈥� Biron says. So, in lieu of a traditional MainStage production, 鈥渨e鈥檙e taking advantage of that to have the students put on a self-defined cabaret.鈥�
Other upcoming shows at the theater include , Jan. 12 to 14, and puppet shows in March by the Putney, Vt.-based Sandglass Theater Company.
The events exemplify 鈥渢he kind of shows that we鈥檙e finding we can do and that are right-sized鈥� for given venues, says , the Hop鈥檚 director of external affairs. 鈥淲e鈥檙e finding productions that work during this period of time and that can be rewarding and impactful.鈥�
Certainly, that seems to be the case with the Department of Theater show, in which the main character grapples with her fear of growing up.
In a way, Lost Girl is 鈥渄ealing with all the anxieties鈥� that this generation of students has about going out into the world, says director 鈥�75, the Avalon Foundation Chair of the Humanities.
Hackett has two children ages 19 and 22 and says that he and the cast have talked at length about the 鈥渆xtraordinary courage鈥� required by their generation, which faces such issues as gun violence, climate change, religious and political institutions 鈥渢hat have failed us,鈥� and the aftermath of COVID-19.
This generation, like Wendy, has a challenging lesson to learn, he says. 鈥淚f you can accept that life is difficult, and you can muster the courage to face it, you will not necessarily have a life without disappointment, because bad things happen to good people, but you will have a happy life.鈥�
Performances are set for Oct. 27 and 28, and Nov. 1 to 4, at 7:30 p.m., with matinees on Oct. 28 and Nov. 4 at 3 p.m.