The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s newly re-formed University Players theater club is proud to present its first production—the dramatic comedy The Big Meal. Shows will be presented Friday through Sunday, April 24 to 26, in the Campus Center Multi-Purpose Room. The Friday and Saturday shows will take place at 7 p.m.; the Sunday show at 5 p.m. Admission is free with an UMPI ID, and, for the general public, there is a $5 suggested donation.
Written by award-winning playwright Dan LeFranc, The Big Meal begins in a typical suburban restaurant on a typical night. A man and a woman meet, sparks fly, and so begins an expansive tale that traverses five generations of a modern family, from first kiss to final goodbye, according to the description from the website of Samuel French, Inc., the largest publisher of plays and musicals. A stunning, big-hearted play that spans nearly 80 years in roughly 90 minutes, The Big Meal tells the extraordinary story of an ordinary family. This show is rated PG-13 due to some adult language.
The cast includes Corey Hebert (Man #1), Amanda Larrabee (Woman #1), Hazen Dauphinee (Man #2), Morgan Swan (Woman #2), Ethan Caron (Man #3), Gaila Allan (Woman #3), Ryan Dee (Boy), Renee LaPointe (Girl), and Chanie Yagod (Server). Darci Faye serves as director of the production and Nicole Gray serves as stage manager. While most cast members are UMPI students, the roles of the boy and girl are being performed by two local children. Renee LaPointe hails from Van Buren and Ryan Dee is from Caribou.
The University Players plans to provide students with a way to express themselves through various theatre forms, such as: plays, musicals, and festivals. The theater club hopes to present a student-penned play, a musical, and a student/faculty playwriting festival during the 2015-2016 academic year.
“Theatre is not only fun to do, and fun to watch, but it also has the potential to change a person’s life, or at least their perspective on life,” University Players club president Darci Faye said. “Good, smart theatre makes you think and challenge your views about the slice of life that is being presented on stage. It is the goal of University Players to not only make theatre fun, but also to show people how important, and deeply emotional it can be. Theatre goes way beyond just entertainment; it is a glimpse into a life that you aren’t familiar with that allows you to see ‘how the other half lives’. Or, maybe the glimpse of life is similar to yours for the good or bad, and it makes you reexamine the way you are living your life.”
Faye said the Players hope to welcome many campus and community members to their premiere production.
To reserve tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/university-players-presents-the-big-meal-tickets-16179286682. To learn more about the University Players, visit the website at http://wp.umpi.edu/universityplayers/ or find its Facebook page by searching for “University Players at UMPI”.
