2008 Woodie Awards
MSU Theatre Advocates Girl Power
Anton Makes Great References to Subjects Such as Breast Cancer And Actors' Plight
Jeremy Slagle
Issue date: 10/21/04 Section: Arts and Entertainment
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How often do we think about laughing, crying, and screaming at the same time? Well, Montclair State University's first production of the year, Anton in Buisness, directed by adjunct theatre professor Tim Herman, strum those feelings within the audience at every moment of the play.
One could say that the play was about relationships. One could also say that the play was about the constant struggle of actors in the cruel world of show business. However, these points were not the main concerns of the play. Anton depended on the maturity of the audience members by playing on the irony of life.
Here we have three girls, from three different backgrounds, involved in Anton Chekhov's The Three Sisters for their own individual reasons. They find common ground and learn to love and respect each other.
Lisabette, Casey and Holly are portrayed as girls with varying pasts and futures. Lisabette, played by Jaclyn Netis, a naïve southern girl, is making her transition from an elementary school teacher to an actress in the big, bad world of show biz.
Casey (Samantha Beedle), is a jaded actress who has scraped by in the entertainment industry by doing about 200 unpaid off-Broadway gigs. The pompous Holly, (Dana Giampiccolo), who has a soft spot for television rejects, is a top-notch television star looking to attain credibility through a classical play such as Chekhov so that she could find film credits. So what is the one thing they have in common? Apparently, their lack of talent.
What made the show interesting was its all-female cast. Girls played guys, girls played multiple roles, girls played - you name it. Nina Law, junior BFA in the Theatre Department, played three roles altogether - the upfront, no nonsense stage manager T-Anne, the nerdy and downright confused businessman, Don Blount, and the African director/anti-prejudice activist Andwenth. Needless to say, all characters she played were off the top in their own way. Law won the audience every time she appeared on stage with different costume and makeup.
One could say that the play was about relationships. One could also say that the play was about the constant struggle of actors in the cruel world of show business. However, these points were not the main concerns of the play. Anton depended on the maturity of the audience members by playing on the irony of life.
Here we have three girls, from three different backgrounds, involved in Anton Chekhov's The Three Sisters for their own individual reasons. They find common ground and learn to love and respect each other.
Lisabette, Casey and Holly are portrayed as girls with varying pasts and futures. Lisabette, played by Jaclyn Netis, a naïve southern girl, is making her transition from an elementary school teacher to an actress in the big, bad world of show biz.
Casey (Samantha Beedle), is a jaded actress who has scraped by in the entertainment industry by doing about 200 unpaid off-Broadway gigs. The pompous Holly, (Dana Giampiccolo), who has a soft spot for television rejects, is a top-notch television star looking to attain credibility through a classical play such as Chekhov so that she could find film credits. So what is the one thing they have in common? Apparently, their lack of talent.
What made the show interesting was its all-female cast. Girls played guys, girls played multiple roles, girls played - you name it. Nina Law, junior BFA in the Theatre Department, played three roles altogether - the upfront, no nonsense stage manager T-Anne, the nerdy and downright confused businessman, Don Blount, and the African director/anti-prejudice activist Andwenth. Needless to say, all characters she played were off the top in their own way. Law won the audience every time she appeared on stage with different costume and makeup.