To help kick off another excellent year in the arts in Beaufort County, students from the University of South Carolina at Beaufort will show off their acting skills in a historic performance.
USCB’s Department of English and Theatre Studies, with support from the Office of Academic Affairs, will present Talking With… by Jane Martin, produced by special arrangement with Samuel French. This show marks the first time that the school itself (rather than a student organization) will present a full theatrical production.
The play consists of eleven monologues by eleven different female characters who cover all regions of the emotional, social, and cultural spectra. There’s the cowgirl who bemoans the commercialization of her beloved rodeo circuit. The tattooed woman who wears her life story on her skin. The young lady who has elevated baton twirling to an art and even a religion. The actress willing to go to extremes to get a part. The snake handler with a crisis of faith. These and many more women will make audiences cry and laugh, often at the same time.
Director George Pate has recently joined the faculty at USCB as an Assistant Professor in Drama and Theatre. He says the cast, all USCB students, has been working very hard. “We have such a range of experience, from seasoned actors—one of whom has even toured professionally—to first-timers. They have really put in the work and grown tremendously.” Pate is also excited for the new producing arrangement. “Rogues and Vagabonds, the student theater group, has a great history on campus, and I am very interested in keeping that going with things like our new improvisational comedy group that just had its first performance in December. But I think it speaks volumes of our school that the Department of English and Theater and the Office of Academic Affairs are committed to officially sponsoring full theatrical productions at our amazing facilities at the Center for the Arts.”
Performances will be at the USCB Center for the Arts at 805 Carteret St. in Beaufort on January 23 and 24 at 7:30. Tickets are $15 to the general public and $10 to USCB students and can be purchased at the door or by calling 843-521-4145 or visiting www.uscbcenterforthearts.com.
