April 10, 2008 (Jackson, Miss.) – April is a flood with events at Belhaven College, including the theatre department’s presentation of Tennessee Williams’ classic, The Glass Menagerie.
Set in depression-era St. Louis, Menagerie follows a young man struggling to free himself from a humdrum life and the schemes of his mother, an aging Southern Belle, as she attempts to find a beau for her invalid daughter. The story paints a fragile, moving picture of hope, inside three very different people.
Williams, a Columbus native, first premiered The Glass Menagerie in 1944, to packed Chicago audiences, before winning the New York Drama Circle Critics Award. Considered his “breakout” work, Williams followed this first success with other timeless stage works, including, A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, cementing his place in history as one of America’s greatest playwrights.
Senior theatre performance major, Alex Grubbs, is directing the Belhaven show, and hopes to leave audiences with a new appreciation for the work of Mississippi son, Tennessee Williams.
“This play is great for actors, directors, and virtually everyone involved because it allows for so much artistic input and creative license. It also means a great deal personally to direct a play by a Mississippi author; it just seems to be coincidence that it a masterpiece,” said Grubbs, a native of Florence, MS.
Belhaven’s production also stars: Kerri Courtney of Richland, as Amanda; Brandon Whitlock of Garland, TX as Tom; Marie Warner of Greenwood, MO as Laura and Scott Gaines of Hondo, TX as Jim.
Performances are April 10-12 and 16-19, at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for the Arts, Flexible Theatre, on Riverside Drive. Tickets are $10 adults, $5 seniors and children.
To reserve tickets for this, and other theatre events, call the box office at 601-965-7026 or e-mail boxoffice@belhaven.edu.