'The Heiress' graces BSC stage Posted on 10/16/2011
Bismarck State College launches its 2011-12 theater season with "The Heiress," a classic American drama by Ruth and Augustus Goetz based on the Henry James short novel, "Washington Square."
Performances are Oct. 19-22 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 23 at 2:30 p.m. in Sidney J. Lee Auditorium on the BSC campus. To reserve tickets, call the box office at 224-5511.
Set in the 1850s, the play tells the story of a young American heiress, her stern Victorian father and a romantic suitor. It explores the changes in pre-Civil War America, women's freedom, and the relationships between men and women.
"It has been fun to see this extraordinary cast adapt to the various Victorian restrictions of a more formal language, movement, etiquette, and, of course, the infamous corset," says Dan Rogers, director and associate professor of theatre at BSC.
Though set in Victorian times, Rogers considers "The Heiress" one of America's first and finest women's liberation plays.
The cast includes Lacey Schouweiler, John Clemo, Marete Snortland-Banks, Charley Conner, Kristen Solberg, Brandon Wetch, and Micki Leer, all of Bismarck; Brittany Kuhn, Mandan; and Taylor Hougum-Carr, Hazen.
This is the third year that the Theatre Arts program has collaborated with BSC's advanced design students to develop the play's look and feel. The image chosen for "The Heiress" poster, program and advertising was designed by Danielle Hendrickson.
The 2011-12 BSC Theatre season includes "Standing on Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays," a joint project with the New York-based Tectonic Theater Project Nov. 7; "The Dead Guy", Dec. 7-11; "Titanic, the Musical," a collaboration with the University of Mary March 7-11, and the Festival of Short Plays May 2-3.
