A woodcutter turned doctor takes center stage in the theater department’s first production of the semester, “The Doctor Inspite of Himself.”
“[The play] is about a man who was thrust into the role of doctorship by a wife trying to exact revenge on him for a bit of a beating he gave her, by having two men beat him until he falsely admits to being a physician,” said Mary Handiboe, associate professor of theater arts and director of the play. “The stage combat is very stylized; we’re using slapsticks to keep the physical aspects humorous rather than threatening.”
She said the comedy was written in neoclassical France at the turn of the eighteenth century.
The cast began preparing for the play with table readings—literally sitting around a table and reading the script.
“We as a cast tore the show apart line by line and figured out what every word meant and why it was said a certain way,” said Jacob Watson, a junior musical theater major who plays Lucas in the production.
Handiboe said a dramaturge — a kind of historian for the production—researched the time period to help with authenticity and historical accuracy.
During the second week of rehearsals, the cast began practicing on their feet—actually acting their roles out. In the weeks after, they did table work as needed, but mostly stayed on their feet.
Handiboe said while only 11 people will actually be on stage, it takes around twice as many working behind the scenes to make the play happen, including scenic design, lighting, costume, publicity and front of house, box office, properties and sound crews.
She said as director, she is responsible for unifying the crews and actors.
“As the director, I have to establish a vision for the production and then work with the production teams and actors to share in that vision,” she said.
She said while she does not directly supervise each and every production aspect, everything is filtered through her for approval.
Watson said as an actor, he was responsible for researching his character.
“I’ve done a good amount of character studies — studying the time period and seeing how [my character] moved, dressed and talked,” he said.
Handiboe said two students involved in the play are in the theater practicum class, however, the other characters must balance the play with their classes. She said students usually set aside around three hours in their schedules each night for rehearsals.
Handiboe estimates she has put in about 85 hours on top of her normal work to prepare for the play. She said doing a production is a lot of work, but it is worth it in the end.
“It is very time consuming but that’s good because interaction with the students is what it’s all about,” she said.
“The Doctor In Spite of Himself” will open next Wednesday, Feb. 17, at 8 p.m. in Verser Theater. Showings will continue Feb. 18-20 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 21 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 each, but current students are admitted free with a student ID.
By Tanner Ward, Signal Writer
