THE
ORACLE State
Henderson
Wednesday March 10, 2021
KaBryn Grayson Managing Editor On Feb. 27, the Henderson theatre department wrapped up their last performance of Lovers: Winners. The play ran for three days, Thursday through Saturday. Each performance began at 7:30 p.m. in Arkansas Hall Auditorium. The press release detailed the plot of the play by Brian Friel, as “the story of Mag and Joe, two 17-yearolds who are to be married in three weeks because Mag is pregnant. While they study and dream at the top of Ardnageeha hill, two commentators reveal the mysterious circumstances that follow their afternoon study session.” Brian Friel was considered one of the greatest living Englishlanguage dramatists. His work has even been compared to great playwrights such as Tennessee Williams. To
University
Issue 8
Vol.118
Theatre department “wins” battle with COVID and winter weather
Photo by Olive Wiseman
Senior theatre arts major Hannah Mims directs a play while following social distancing restrictions.
understand how such a legendary play was carried out you would have to ask senior theatre major, Hannah Mims. She selected Lovers:Winners as her play to direct for her Capstone 1 class. “I really love the way it approached this idea of young love as well as the anachronistic properties,” Mims said. The play’s focus changes from telling a story of two lovers as they’re sitting up on the hill and talking about life, and then it cuts to two commentators who tell the story of what leads to their tragic death. The piece explores different variables that impact a teenage relationship. “They have a lot of passion, but that isn’t always a good thing,” Mims said. “It’s like really true to
the way teenagers are when they first learn about being in a relationship.” Mims appreciate the authenticity of the relationship as the couple loves each other, yet fights, as all couples do eventually. It is inspiring to see people at such a young age be committed to each other. “It’s interesting to see how these two specifically get through those arguments,” Mims said. “They can come out of it and still love each other and want to run away into the mountains.” Many have compared this tragedy to that of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Lovers: Winners is quite different, argues Mims. The couple is supported by their families and they are far from trying to end their
lives. “It’s called the winners even though it ends so tragically,” Mims said. “They still took the chance on themselves and on their love.” Mim’s castmate, sophomore Lucy Speer, shared similar sentiments. “I hope the audience takes away that even though life is finite, it’s still beautiful and worth living.” Speer said. “It has a beautiful, albeit slightly tragic, story, and it is not like any show I’ve been in before.” Putting on any kind of production can be daunting, especially while adhering to all the current COVID restrictions. Thankfully, the theatre department was able to overcome the obstacles. “Talking about COVID
restrictions, this play is one we can kind of manipulate so that people aren’t getting too close together,” she said. “ It’s not really inhibiting the performance that we need to be masked and distanced.” The cast’s saving grace was Zoom. Of course, it was not a large stage with room to roam, but Zoom allowed them to hear each other reading lines and remember their cues. It also allowed an opportunity to sit down with the stage manager and answer questions. The cast did not experience any technical difficulties, apart from human error, like the occasional person leaving their mic unmuted. Mims said the smooth sailing could be attributed to previous use of Zoom in one (Continued on Pg. 3)
Humane Society lends a helping paw Kaela McKim Features Editor The decision to spay or neuter a pet is one that many people have to make. It can also be one of the most important petcare options. Nearly all veterinarian clinics offer the procedures, but there are other places that provide it for a much cheaper cost, such as the Humane Society of Clark County. The latest clinic was on Mar. 8 - 10, with new ones coming every two months. “You do have to preregister and pre-pay before you are able to come with your pet,” said Janie Allen, president of the Humane Society of Clark County. “The reason for this is
that the vets who do the procedures can only do so many in a day so it’s important to have a set number of pets ready to go throughout the three days available.” If someone is not pre-registered, it is not guaranteed that a spot will be available. It is also important that people pre-pay to ensure that all those who signed up show for the procedure. Local veterinarians conduct the operations at a reduced cost, so it is important to Allen and her team to not waste the veterinarian’s time and resources. “The animals do have to be around eight to ten weeks and must weigh over two pounds,” Allen said. It is recommended, however, that owners wait
until the animal is around a year of age. According to Allen, the lifespans of dogs and cats who get the procedure are much longer. The risk of getting breast cancer in females and colon cancer in males is decreased, and their temperament typically improves. “Despite all of the great reasons to get your animal fixed, one of my top reasons is to avoid overpopulation,” Allen said. “Arkadelphia has a very large problem with dumping puppies and kittens so people end up finding them and bringing them here to avoid the animals getting hurt.” With cars constantly on the road, a river nearby, animal traps from hunters, and predatory wild animals, animals who
are abandoned are at risk of disease, and worst of all, death. When people get their animals fixed, it will reduce the cat and dog population which will result in less of being dumped or surrendered to the shelter. “Our whole mission is to save and protect these babies,” Allen said. “But at times we run out of space, so it is extremely important for us and the community to reduce the animal population.” The procedure costs $80 for dogs under 70 pounds, and that also includes a rabies shot. For cats, it costs $55 with a rabies shot. The next spay and neuter event will be May 10 - 12. The Humane Society is open from Tuesday to Friday from 12 to 4 pm and
Photo by Kaela McKim
The Humane Society of Clark County hosts a spay and neuter clinic to improve their community.
Saturday 10 am to 2 pm and is currently accepting volunteers to help with day-to-day animal upkeep. Monetary donations are accepted, as well as products such as paper towels, bleach, and nonclumping kitty litter.