By Kelli Londono/entertainment editor
David Reid/The Collegian
Theatre Northwest presents the romantic tragedy Dark of the Moon, which depicts a modern rendition of a classic fairy tale with American nostalgia, Dec. 5-9.
Set in a town near the Smoky Mountains, the play follows the lives of the witch boy John who falls in love with a human girl named Barbara. To be together, John goes to Conjur Man and Woman, wizards who will help him become human. John must bargain with the wizards and the deal tests Barbara’s and John’s love for each other and their lives.
Director and drama associate professor Joshua Blann said he is trying to make the play more accessible and contemporary. Changing the music, making the setting, costumes and lighting more abstract will make the characters more three-dimensional and less caricature, he said.
Although the play is an adaptation of The Little Mermaid, student Caterina Kielpinski, who plays the human girl Barbara, said it has more real-life moments than one would think.
“It is just something interesting to watch because it is not your normal show,” she said. “It’s not in theater-land. It’s a very realistic show. You have your theater-land moments, but it’s not something unrelatable.”
Blann said the play is done in high schools and colleges across the U.S. because it can hold a big cast, which is not common for contemporary shows, and has a timeless love story.
“One of the original reasons I wanted to do the play was when you look on the History Channel or the Discovery Channel, you see these reality shows like Moonshiners and Swamp People,” he said. “You see these enclave of cultures in America that have been around for hundreds of years, and they still exist in contemporary America largely unchanged. And that’s something that for those who live in the suburbs, like here in Fort Worth, Texas, they don’t get to see very often.”
Student Bret Duley, who plays John, said he thinks students should come to the show because it is different and they get in for free.
“Theater is much different than going to the movies,” he said. “Support the arts. We put a lot of work into it. It would be nice if people came and saw it.”
Ray Haney plays Conjur Man. He said students would enjoy the show because of the fairy tale aspect.
“It’s simply a fairy tale, and fairy tales teach us stuff,” he said. “There is a great quote by an author that says, ‘Fairy tales teach us not that there are dragons, but that dragons can be defeated.’ Fairy tale stories like this are what you grew up on, and this is being the original type. It’s also an adult fairy tale.”
Showtimes for Dark of the Moon are 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday in the WTLO Theatre. Tickets are $6 for general admission, $3 for non-TCC students and seniors and free for TCC students, faculty and staff. For reservations, call the box office at 817-515-7724.
