On Feb. 21-25 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 26 at 2 p.m., ETSU’s Department of Communication and Performance will be staging Alan Ball’s comedy “Five Women Wearing the Same Dress” at the Campus Center Building in Studio 205.
Screenwriter Alan Ball is an established writer who wrote the movie “American Beauty” (1999) and the TV shows “Six Feet Under” (2001) and “True Blood” (2008).
The play is directed by Bobby Funk and features ETSU student actors Audrey Hammonds, Reagan James, Caroline Denning, Courtney Spencer, Angel Thacker and Francisco Rodriquez.
This show takes place during 1993 at an upscale estate bedroom in Knoxville, Tennessee. The main characters are avoiding the bride and her family.
The five bridesmaids discover an unexpected connection with each other that is ironically based on their lack of connection with the bride, Tracie. The bridesmaids represent different contemporary personalities.
The characters are: Francis, a loyal young Christian; Trisha, a beautiful lady who’s given up on the idea of love; Meredith, the bride’s rebellious younger sister; Georgeanne, an unhappy married mom; Mindy, a polite lesbian, and Tripp, a cousin of Mindy who develops an interest in one of the ladies.
For Funk, the play does more than just make people laugh. He believes there are many themes at work.
He has attended many weddings, and the characters he views in the play are not exclusive to the stage.
“These characters are lifelike. They’re real. We’re trying to break down the stereotypes associated with each one of them.” Funk said.
Choosing “Five Women Wearing the Same Dress” was also an outward act of consideration.
Funk mentioned that the majority of majors in the ETSU Theatre Department were female. With this in mind, he thought “Five Women Wearing the Same Dress,” would be appropriate so that the women could have their time on the stage.
Francisco Rodriguez, who plays Tripp, was on the stage for the first time in “Five Women Wearing the Same Dress.”
“It was definitely a great experience,” said Rodriguez about what it was like to be the only male in the cast.
“These girls have been acting since their freshman years and are very seasoned. I’ve had a six or seven page script and they’ve had the whole script. It’s very impressive how they did it. They’ve worked very hard,” Rodriguez said.
Tickets can be bought at door or online. The cost is $5 for students and faculty or $10 for general admission.
