by Rachel Schlegel
The highly acclaimed Dead Man Walking will be performed by the Hesston College Theatre Department as the first production of the year at 7:30 p.m. in Northlawn room 109 Oct. 1 to 2 and 7 to 9. The production is also the first under new theatre director Laura Kraybill.
Dead Man Walking is the true story of Matthew Poncelet, a convicted murderer on death row and the nun, Sister Helen Prejean, who befriends him. The story was made famous by the book written by Sister Prejean in 1993, which was then turned into a screenplay and major motion picture in 1995, an opera in 2000 and the play in 2002.
The stage version was created as the Dead Man Walking School Theatre Project as a way to involve young performers in deeper reflection on the death penalty. The only way a school can perform the play is if at least two other academic departments provide course work related to the death penalty. At Hesston College the Introduction to Literature class and the Theatre Appreciation class read the script, had discussions on it and then met together to do projects on the death penalty.
Kraybill notes the timeliness of the play at Hesston as the Kansas State Legislature debated and voted on a bill earlier this year that would have ended the death penalty in the state of Kansas. The bill lost by a tie vote in February.
“I like the play because it is sensitive to both sides of the issue and shows the complexities of the death penalty,” said Kraybill. “It also shows the humanity of people on death row. The public is so removed from what goes on in those death houses that it is easy to forget about the people who have been sentenced to death. The play lets us in on what it’s like.”
Talk-back sessions will be held after each of the performances to give audience members a chance to process their response to the production and the death penalty issue. Members of the cast and Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty will be part of the talk-back panel. The project’s national coordinator Steven Crimaldi will be at the opening night performance on Oct. 1.
The cast includes 19 student performers and eight crew members including prominent roles played by freshmen Robert Howell of Newton, Kan., Alanah Rempel of Grand Lake, Colo., Rachel Brown of Catoosa, Okla., and Stephanie Ruhs of North Rhine, Germany. The cast also includes a 10-year-old community member and chemistry professor Jim Yoder in the role of Chaplain Farley.
Kraybill is excited to try some new arrangements with the theatre space. The room was converted into a black box theatre in 2008 and allows the stage and audience area to be moved as desired.
“The play will be performed on an alleyway stage that goes through the audience,” explained Kraybill. “Audience members will be on both sides of the alleyway and a there will be a small stage area at both ends, allowing the audience to feel more involved.”
The play’s running time is about two hours including an intermission. It is not recommended for young children due to themes. Tickets can be purchased through the Hesston College Bookstore in person, by phone at 620-327-8105 or online at www.hesstonbooks.com. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and seniors (65+). Tickets will also be available at the door 30 minutes before each show, and are subject to availability.
Located 30 miles North of Wichita, Hesston College is the two-year liberal arts college of Mennonite Church USA.