By John Harden/reporter
An original production opens next week on South Campus in honor of Women’s History Month.
Medea Odea is a collaborative effort by 16 students who gathered their own material through various resources.
The resulting production blends poems, scripts and speeches all written by women.
“It’s a compiled piece that the students gathered for the play,” Lindy Benton-Muller, South theater director, said.
Benton-Muller has been directing 15 years and is giving her students a chance to learn by building and producing a play.
“I want to help them grow as artists and show them what it means to be a producer and also female,” she said.
“Symbolically, the play starts out as a lecture and then becomes a spiritual quest for understanding in a tribal ancient place,” she said.
The play’s tone and setting begin simply and transition throughout the play, Benton-Muller said.
The title comes from the mythological character Medea. Cast member Teran Jones, in her first TCC production, said the mythological character is evident in the stories presented in the play.
“Medea is just to relate the stories,” she said. “She was a strong, passionate woman. And she experienced everything that we are trying to express in the play.”
For the cast members, being a part of this play has a lot of purpose—not to only entertain, but also to learn.
“I’m getting a chance to produce something for Women’s History Month,” Sa’Karee Campbell said. “It’s a way to show how all women are connected through their struggles and their strengths.”
The most unique aspect of the play noted by cast members is the variety of material and the number of stories the play contains.
“I found most of my material from the Internet and poems and movies that I like that had a strong female character I would like to portray,” Jones said.
Because of the multiple stories, many of the cast members will play more than one role and character.
“For the most part we’re going to be playing ourselves, and the different characters come from us telling stories from around a campfire,” cast member Jason Watson said.
The material presented in the play ranges from comedy to drama dealing with more serious issues.
“I mostly tried to find stuff that I thought was funny,” Watson said.
“I found a couple of things online, and I also wrote a piece on my mom that was actually pretty serious, but the rest is pretty funny.”
For a couple of the cast members, Medea Odea is their first production at TCC, and they are enjoying the experience.
“I think it’s exciting because I have never been a part of a play before,” Danielle McClure said.
“I like it because it’s a collaboration of all of us working together.”
Medea Odea will not only give a perspective on life as a woman, but will offer a chance for students and faculty to be entertained, Benton-Muller said.
“Hopefully, everyone will come have a good time, have an enjoyable evening and share it with me and the cast,” she said.
Benton-Muller, who holds degrees in music education and performance, enjoys sharing her experiences.
“ I’ve been fortunate to be able to work as producer, and I want to give my students the same opportunity,” she said.
Because of some of the content presented in the play, some situations may not be suitable for a younger audience.
“Our target audience is young adult students mostly, but older ones too,” she said. “This play is intended for a mature audience and does contain adult language and situations.”
Medea Odea runs Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 28-March 1. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 for general public, $3 for seniors and non-TCC students and free for TCC students, faculty and staff.
Medea Odea
South Campus
Showtimes: Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 28-March 1, 7:30 p.m. (no late seating)
Box Office: 817-515-7724
General Admission: $6
Non-TCC Students/Seniors: $3
TCC Students, Faculty, Staff: Free
