With the spring semester in full swing, another Drury production is taking place right before spring break. This is a production titled, The Mad Ones, put on by two students, Ahilyn Aceves and Carter Williams. Opening on March 9th at 7:30 PM, the show will be in the Sunderland Studio Theater in the O’Banon side. The doors open at 7 PM, and seats are first come, first serve. The cast, crew and directors have all been working incredibly hard for the production to begin. In this Mirror article, Carter and Ahilyn highlight their inspiration behind this project and around their favorite memories with this experience.

Both Carter and Ahilyn are seniors at Drury University, who have been involved in a multitude of opportunities around campus within their four years here. Carter Williams is a Computer Science and Music double major. Carter is a member in all three of the vocal ensembles at Drury (Chorale, Singers, Chamber Choir), while occasionally conducting pieces for them. Carter is also composing for two upcoming films created by a combined effort of the Communications Department and Theatre Department: The Metaphysical Salesman and Hi-fi Hibachi, which are two other senior seminar projects for the theatre department.

Ahilyn Aceves is also a double major, but in Criminology and Psychology. Ahilyn is Secretary of Psi Chi, the psychology honor society here on campus. She is also Vice President of Alpha Psi Omega, the theatre honor society. She also has two campus jobs, one as a tour guide out of Bay Hall and another as a Drury Theatre Shop Supervisor.

This four-person musical was funded by the Drury Fusion committee with a couple of outside donors. Ahilyn expanded on this process further in an interview stating, “Since we decided to do this show outside of the regular theatre season, we applied for a Drury Fusion Learning Experiential Grant. Receiving this grant allowed pay for the licensing of the show and create a budget for all other design elements. We put together a team of designers a little before receiving the grant because we wanted to be certain we had the creative minds to put the whole show together. […] Again, since this show isn’t a part of the actual theatre season, a lot of the work put in to build the show was on us. Fortunately, we were able to use a lot of platforms in stock which saved us a lot of time. Carter and I put in a lot of hours on the set with our set designer Kay Wacasey.”

Although it is a four-person musical, there are a lot of individuals who have all worked extremely hard to help the production of this show. The list of full cast and crew is listed as:

Co-directors: Ahilyn Aceves, Carter Williams

Actors:

Hannah Hall – playing Sam

Kylee Compton – play Kelly

Irelynn Holst – playing Beverly

Ethan Cusack – playing Adam

Stage Manager: Mathew Colling

Assistant Stage Manager: Rome Little

House Manager: Jordan Mouser

Scenic Designer: Kay Wacasey

Lighting Designer: Natalee Reid

Costume Designer: Brynn Tucker

Sound Designer and Technician: Adrienne Kremer

Props Master: Jill Komadian

Dresser: Anne Ohlemeier

Lighting Board operator: Mitch Johnson

Sound board operator: Allyson Roberts

Poster Design: Kylee Compton

Show Photos: Emme Mauzey

Music Director: Carter Williams

Pianist: Beth Falukos

Harpist: Kristin Gram

Violinist: Kirsten Weiss

Guitarist: John Russ

Ushers: Danny Behlmann, Caleb Conaway, Nico Hopper and Julia Chamberlain.

The story, The Mad Ones, revolves around Samantha Brown (played by Hannah Hall), a graduating high school senior who is trying to understand her budding adult identity while also delving into the grief and guilt of her recent past. When asked to explain his inspiration for the show, Carter went into depth about what this show means to him personally, and through the story itself.

“When it comes to the message behind the play: Sam’s story takes place in the transition between high school and college. We really enjoy having Hannah and Ethan play the role of these high school seniors because they themselves, being college freshmen, just experienced that transition. There is so much going on right now when it comes to world events that life can be crushing for so many of us right now. The Mad Ones is about meeting the sadness and the shock, absorbing it, and eventually moving forward. You can’t forget tragedy; you must carry it. Additionally, many of the lessons in The Mad Ones can also be applicable to the transition between college and beyond. New chapters are new chapters, and they can be exciting but also frightening. Another small reason for picking this musical is that both Ahilyn and I are seniors and are also about to move on to a new stage in our lives as well.”

With such a sentimental and personal journey coming to a close, Ahilyn and Carter both reflected on their favorite moments regarding the experience of the show.

Ahilyn shared, “Personally there have been a lot of great moments. I think currently it’s putting all the pieces together. The set is almost done, so seeing that come to life off of the model we had in January is really special. This weekend we will be doing tech, meaning we will set the lighting for the show. On the technical side I participate the most in lighting so I am very excited to see Natalee’s ideas and have it transform the space. Carter does most of his work in sound and has done a lot with our sound designer Adrienne to do things that will make the audience feel all the sounds. On Sunday we will officially see and hear everything together which will be very special for us.”

And as Ahilyn spoke on Carter doing his work in sound, Carter shared his favorite memory to be, “If I were to pick a favorite moment, it may have been when we first synced up our sound effects that accompany our music. We borrowed some big speakers from the Communications Department that really gave our bass some serious kick. The result is spectacular and accentuates a critical moment in the play. You’ll have to watch out for it!”

Both of these individuals, along with the cast and crew within the theatre department, have worked tirelessly to bring the Drury community a sensational show to be shared. In a final quote, Ahilyn summarizes her experiences with the Drury University Theatre department, “Something I will miss is the opportunity to work in every aspect of theatre. Our department allows everyone to work in all departments no matter your class classification. As a freshman you can come in and lead a design. These kinds of opportunities are great resume builders, and it gives you a ton of experience. This department is so good and filled with such kind-hearted individuals and I’ll miss that a lot.”

Again, If you would like to support Carter, Ahilyn, and the Drury University Theatre Department, the show is running March 9th through 12th at 7:30 PM in the Sunderland Studio Theatre (in O’Bannon). Tickets are first come first serve!

Article by Gabriella Wuller