Edmond Life and Leisure - July 25, 2024

Play ‘Eurydice’ continues run at Upstage Theater

Eurydice opened last weekend at Upstage Theatre and Performing Arts Studio in Edmond. It runs this Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:00 pm, with a 2:00 matinee on Sunday, the 28th. Eurydice is a play with music. It was written by Sarah Ruhl and first performed in 2003 at the Madison Repertory Theatre. For this production, original music was composed by our own Orpheus, Connor Irwin, a rising Sophomore at Oklahoma City University studying Vocal Performance.

Upstage Theatre is primarily known for their musicals, with show-stopping performances by local talent. The theatre is owned and operated by Jenny and Brett Rottmayer, Edmond natives and graduates of both Edmond Memorial High School and the Musical Theatre program at the University of Central Oklahoma. They have been producing musicals and running children’s theatre camps in Edmond for over 20 years with the help of Patrick Towne, current Drama teacher at EMHS.

Ruhl’s Eurydice is based on lines 453 through 527 from Book IV of Virgil’s The Georgics. She adapted and updated the story to follow the journey of Eurydice in the Underworld, interspersed with monologues from Orpheus on his quest to reunite with his wife. In this script, the couple is described as “a little too young and a little too in love.” It tells the story of Eurydice, portrayed by Sydney Wehmeyer of Stillwater, frequently seen at Town & Gown Theatre; and her reconnecting with her Father, who died before her wedding day. The Father, played by OKC’s own Kevin Wellfare (Winner of the 2023 Gem Award for Best Lead Actor for his portrayal of The Pastor in Lucas Hnath’s The Christians at Jewel Box Theatre).

Rounding out the cast, we have the inhabitants of The Underworld. The Nasty Interesting Man/The Child is Ruhl’s equivalent of Hades. This role is shared between two local actors. The Thursday, Friday and Saturday shows feature Isaiah Zeman, who will be teaching dance at Putnam City West High School starting this fall. The Sun-day matinee and closing show will feature Noah Cochran, rising senior in UCO’s Musical Theatre department. Both actors give completely different takes on the role. For starters, one is 6 foot 2, and the other is 5 foot 2. They take the same blocking and same direction and make the character their own.

Also in The Underworld are three Stones. Ruhl states in her notes on the production that these characters “might be played as though they are nasty children at a birthday party.” Big Stone (Renda Schroder), Little Stone (Izabella Huff), and Loud Stone (Morgan Mazzei) bring a sense of play to an otherwise tragic story. So many discoveries were made during the rehearsal process for the Stones, coached by Assistant Director, Julia Seely.

Seely wears many hats for this production. She serves as Assistant Director, Stage Manager, and Props Master. Direction is by Anna Steele, this is her directorial debut. Technical Director is Brett Rottmayer. Lighting Design is by Patrick Towne. Music Supervision is by Connor Irwin. Intimacy Coordination by Robin Robinson. Quick Change Coordinator is Isaiah Zeman. Dylan Howard is the Spotlight Operator, Jenny Rottmayer is the seamstress, Tiffany Steele is the Paint Charge, and set painters are Remington Steele and Julia Seely. This production is produced with permission by Concord Theatricals: 250 W. 57th Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10107-0102.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at Upstagetheatreok.com or by phone at (405) 2855803.