The 2021 spring-semester production put on by the Baldwin Players will be composed of three morality plays from across the centuries and will be released digitally on YouTube near the end of April.
The three parts of this performance are “Wisdom,” a fifteenth century play with a heavy focus on Christianity, The Grimm Brother’s fairytale “Hansel & Gretel” converted into play form, and the 1916 play “Life.” Dr. Brian Ray – director of the Baldwin Players – said, “The theme that holds all of these together is the idea that each of them has a lesson that is valid today as it was when each was written. Basically, this project looks at the way that we use acted stories to teach moral truths and serve as cautionary tales.”
The cast consists of ABAC students Roderick Baisden, Dontavious Bell, Jaylin Croft, Harley Normand, Kaylee Myers, Justin Walls, and Craig Mark Wells, a performer from the community. Dr. Ray said, “This cast has more students in it than last fall. It’s also a group of young people who have a mixed background of experience in HS theatre and some other experience. I’m really excited to work with them.”
Auditions took place early last month and were conducted both online and in-person. According to Dr. Ray, “Most chose to use the video audition method.”
Each play will be shot on a different evening in one take using two alternating camera angles. There are tentative plans to film in front of a green screen to allow more “scenic elements” to be added to each shot. The need to film the play instead of preforming it live could also allow some scenes to be filmed on-campus in different locations – such as classrooms or outdoor areas. According to Dr. Ray: “I haven’t fully w
orked that out yet, but it is in the hopper of ideas that are percolating as we go into rehearsals.”
The plan is to rehearse for five weeks, film in late March and early April, and have the finished product edited together and available on YouTube by the end of April.
