The Blinn College-Bryan Campus Theatre Arts Program is putting the focus on family this holiday season with two one-act plays from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Thornton Wilder.
Blinn will present “The Happy Journey to Trenton and Camden” and “The Long Christmas Dinner” at 7:30pm Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 30-Dec. 2, and at 2 pm Sunday, Dec. 3, in Bryan Campus Student Center Room F-120.
“These one-act plays are very well-crafted and personal productions,” says the Blinn-Bryan theatre director Greg Wise. “They have minimal theatrical scenery so the focus remains on the characters and their relationships with one another.”
Keeping with the season’s theme of timeless tales, “The Happy Journey to Trenton and Camden” chronicles a family road trip from their Newark home to visit a daughter in Camden. During their journey, the family reminisces, jokes, and sightsees – otherwise ordinary events that capture the universal joy and sadness of life.
Wilder’s fascination with the passage of time and its effect on people continues in “The Long Christmas Dinner,” which spans nearly a century with a single family. The dramatic comedy showcases the ever-changing lives of several generations of the Bayard family annually around the dinner table.
“It is all about family,” says theatre student Dylan Gonzales, who portrays Roderick Bayard in “The Long Christmas Dinner. “These performances will show the audience that what is most important is who you are with, especially during this holiday season.”
Following the Friday performance, the audience is invited to stay for a brief Friday Night Talkback in which the director and actors return to the stage to discuss the production and answer questions from the audience.
Blinn’s Theatre Arts Program hosts a variety of performances each year on its Bryan and Brenham campuses, and offers a quality educational foundation through study, application and experience. The Theatre Arts Program is part of Blinn’s Division of Visual and Performing Arts & Kinesiology, which offers courses and hands-on learning opportunities in architecture, arts, communication studies, construction science, kinesiology, music, and theatre.
Performances are $5 for students and $10 for the general public. Seating is first-come, first-serve and tickets can be purchased at www.blinn.edu. For questions regarding ticket reservations, contact the Box Office at (979) 209-8100. Tickets will also be available at the door.
