[NEohioPAL]Wooster Department of Theatre Presents Festive 'Once on this Island'

[Ansley Valentine]

Wooster Department of Theatre Presents Festive 'Once on this Island'

WOOSTER, Ohio - A Caribbean-style celebration will be staged by The Colle=
ge of Wooster when the Department of Theatre presents "Once on this Islan=
d" Nov. 3-5 at 8:15 p.m. in Freedlander Theatre (329 E. University St.). =
The festive production is a twist on the well-known tale of "The Little M=
ermaid."

Based on the Rosa Guy novel My Love, My Love, this Ahrens-Flaherty produc=
tion is directed by Ansley Valentine, assistant professor of theatre at W=
ooster. It tells the story of Ti Moune, a poor dark-skinned peasant girl =
who falls in love with Daniel, an upper-class white boy from the other si=
de of the island whose life she saves after a car crash. Central to the s=
tory are four gods that the peasants believe rule their lives -Love (Erzu=
lie), Earth (Asaka), Water (Agwe), and Death (Papa Ge) - and cause the yo=
ung lovers to meet, sending Ti Moune on the fateful journey that tests th=
e strength of her love.

"It's a story about race, class, and gender conflicts," said Valentine. "=
It explores how people make choices between what they believe and what th=
ey actually do."

Despite the presence of what Valentine describes as serious subject matte=
r, he says that "Once on this Island" is a great show for kids. The 90-mi=
nute production features a multi-ethnic cast with 10 lead characters and =
22 total performers, including Ti Moune as a child (played by Jaelen Punc=
h, granddaughter of Carolyn Buxton, senior associate in Wooster's Dean of=
 Students Office) and Ti Moune as a young woman (played by senior Denise =
Mosley). Other main characters are TonTon (JaQuan Bryant), Mama (Erica Da=
vis), Agwe (Dan Kavka), Asaka (Rachel Fichter), Erzulie (Katy Patterson),=
 Papa Ge (Philip McLead and Kieran Welsh-Phillips), Daniel (Scott Daniels=
on), Armand (Tom Hull), Lady Armand (Amanda Dahlin), and Andrea (Meredith=
 Overcash).

The ensemble cast consists of guards/puppeteers (Scott Campbell, Dave Wal=
ton, Nate Busman, and Alex Gauvin), Grand Homme (Tess Burgler, Lisa Shame=
s, Katie Wilkins, Sheila O'Connor), and peasants (Kirk Spence, Emmanuel S=
terling, Kellee Roston, Andraele Reed, and Khisekh Salaam).

The actors are joined by a nine-piece band directed by Toni Shreve, a 10-=
piece vocal ensemble, featuring Steven Bouyak, Nick Amato, Lauren Mosher,=
 Elise Carlson, Gen Pecharka, Maggie Bullock, Stefanie Genda, Kirsten Jae=
gersen, Lindsay Galon, Rachel Fiola, Ilana Soorenko, Scotti Grewe, Kat Br=
ausch, Nichole Houdek, and Brittany Rancour. There will also be a handful=
 of colorful puppets designed by Valentine and assembled by his students.=


Tickets for "Once on this Island" are $9 for adults and $6 for children a=
nd senior citizens as well as faculty, staff, and non-College of Wooster =
students. All other events are free and open to the public. For more info=
rmation, contact the Department of Theatre at 330-263-2241.

The next production by the Department of Theatre will be Arthur Miller's =
classic "All My Sons," which runs Feb. 24-26 and March 2-4 in Shoolroy Th=
eatre, and features Richard Figge, emeritus professor of German and a vet=
eran stage performer at Wooster, as well as Sara Patton, vice president f=
or development at Wooster.
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Ansley Valentine
Assistant Professor
Department of Theatre
The College of Wooster
1189 Beall Avenue
Wooster, OH 44691
330-263-2028 Office
330-347-1519 Cell Phone