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The Lion's Roar

The Official Student News Media of Southeastern Louisiana University

The Lion's Roar

The Official Student News Media of Southeastern Louisiana University

The Lion's Roar

    Original play walks line between dreams, reality

    “Beware the Licorice Vines,” a story of love and loss, follows the struggle of a brokenhearted painter who becomes whole again after finding romance and coming to terms with the death of his wife. 

    Written by Eddie Zipperer, the original theatrical production was performed March 9-12 in the Vonnie Borden Theatre. 

    The screenplay was produced by the Southeastern theater department as a reward for claiming first place in the Inkslinger Playwriting Competition. Since winning the competition, Zipperer has sold the play for editing and publication. Thus, this week is the only time the play has been performed in its original state, according to director Chad Winters. 

    “It was elevated [among other submissions in the competition] in the sense that it was simple in its message, but it brought the concept across so strongly,” said Veronica Gutierrez, one of the judges in the playwriting competition who favored Zipperer’s manuscript. “There was vivid imagery, it was easily staged and the writing was hilarious but also hit home when it needed to. There is almost a formula to playwriting, and Eddie has almost perfected it.”

    The plot followed Hudson, a bereft painter played by MJ Ricks, who coped with the loss of his dead wife Laura, played by Emily Nodine, by continuing to see and speak to her as if she were still alive. A car crash in the middle of a blizzard forced Hudson and new love interest Katie, played by Misty Gros, together for an evening while waiting for the storm to subside. Romantic feelings for Katie sparked immense feelings of guilt in Hudson, who felt that moving on would mean betraying his wife. 

    This production was founded in competition, not simply among playwrights, but also among actors. Ricks and Tyler Meyer, who performed as Hudson’s uplifting best friend and agent Tom, both aimed for the lead role as Hudson during auditions, sparking some friendly-natured rivalry behind the scenes. This rivalry extends back to May 2013, when both actors auditioned for the part of the Mad Hatter in Southeastern’s production of “Alice the Brave.” 

    “We started off as enemies at first,” said Ricks. “I auditioned for ‘Alice.’ I tried to get the Mad Hatter, but he [Meyer] gets the Mad Hatter. Then I auditioned for ‘On the Verge,’ and [Meyer] ends up getting the lead role. We both auditioned for this show, and I ended up playing Hudson!” 

    However, according to Ricks and Meyer, it was easy to work together once roles were established. The pair found chemistry on the stage and enjoyed the give-and-take of their performance together. 

    “What you see onstage, it’s not the same every night,” said Meyer. “We’re literally just playing with each other onstage. Every line that we say is like a toss back and forth, like a tennis match… Before we even got in here, both of us just wanted to work with each other. We never worked together, but I knew that I wanted to work with [Ricks] after watching [his performance in] ‘A Doll’s House.’”

    The performance elicited a strong response from those in attendance. At the end of the night, the cast received a standing ovation from the audience. 

    “My favorite part was Tom,” said Patrick Thompson, who attended the play Wednesday night. “I don’t know who the actor is for Tom, but he’s fantastic. All of his gestures and facial expressions were perfect. They were spot on.”

    While the crowd was overall happy with the performance, feedback from audience members pointed out the devil in the details. 

    “The dancing was really awkward,” said Thompson. “It seemed like they didn’t think it out that much, or they didn’t practice it enough or something. Compared to the rest of the play, which felt very natural, the dancing felt really unnatural and awkward. Because it was a dream sequence, it should have been even more natural.”

    Fans of Southeastern theater can look forward to the next production, “Peter and Tink,” written by Chelsea Krause and directed by Jim Winter. Doors are scheduled to open April 21-24. 

     
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