UTM’s Vanguard Theatre will be hosting auditions for their fall production, Sept. 16-17.
Auditions will be held at 7 p.m. in The Little Theatre, which is located in the Fine Arts Building; the selected play will be “Fools” written by Neil Simon.
“Fools” is a play about a small town in Russia in the late 19th Century that has been cursed with unintelligence. The lead male character, Leon, is a teacher from outside the town. He has been hired to educate the daughter of the main family in the village.
Upon arriving at the town, Leon is informed that the villagers are all idiots because a curse was placed on them 200 years ago. There are two options to break the curse: educate the lead female character, Sophia, within 24 hours, or have Sophia marry the heir of the family that placed the curse.
If Leon does not succeed, he will fall victim to the curse, and forever be an idiot.
In an unexpected twist, Leon falls in love with Sophia at first sight. However, the curse makes the villagers unable to fall in love. His love for her causes him to work even harder to educate her within the allotted time.
The story that ensues is one ridiculous interaction after another. The town inhabitants are aware of their stupidity, but are unable to do anything about it.
“‘Fools’ is a comedy which will appeal to everyone, and it is a play that will give our acting students good opportunities to play some very crazy characters,” said Melanie Hollis, a UTM teacher, as well as Vanguard Theatre’s costume designer.
This will be the first production in the new Fine Arts Building.
“Neil Simon’s ‘Fools’ is a nice way to initiate our new ‘Little Theatre’ this fall. We are so excited about and proud of our new facility– and ready to perform in this new space,” Hollis said.
Everyone is encouraged to audition for this play, regardless of whether or not they have previous acting experience.
“I feel like a lot of people assume that the Vanguard Theatre is only for theatre majors or for those who intend on pursuing an acting career. This is not the case, and I’m hoping that this new play, along with the new space, will bring more people out to audition. This play is a great opportunity to expand your horizons,” said Jonathan Fisher, a senior Broadcasting major who has performed in three Vanguard productions.
For more information regarding auditions or the play, contact Doug Cook at 731-881-7406.
