SUU’s College of Performing & Visual Arts hosted the opening night of the performance “Speech and Debate” on February 27. The play featuring a 4-person cast took the stage in the Eileen and Allen Anes Studio Theatre for an innovative and brilliant performance.
The storyline revolved around a local politician’s homosexual sex scandal with high school males. In “Speech and Debate,” a high school journalist attempts to write an article covering the scandal. After being denied due to the school’s policies with the newspaper, the lead character, Solomon, turns to the school’s new speech and debate team as an outlet for his efforts.
Within the club, Solomon finds new sources for additional information to aid the article. In preparation for their presentation to expose the politician, the members find revelations in their lives as they come to understand their insecurities and shortcomings.
“Speech and Debate” tackles multiple issues in the plotline of story. The characters tackle the issue of sex scandals with politicians and sexual relationships with students that barely meet the age of 18. The speech and debate club try to emphasize the importance of talking about tough issues that school districts and adults try to avoid, which leads to ignorance of adult topics.
This play tackles these controversial topics with a sense of humor and the writers were able to incorporate both aspects with equal attention. There was no noticeable split in humor and controversy. The high school setting brought back traditional high school humor and dialect. “Speech and Debate” has its share of mature humor which may be inappropriate for younger audiences, but has a sense of humor that college students will appreciate.
The performance received a standing ovation from the audience with cheers and laughs throughout the show. Audience member, Sterling Gaillard, a freshman Graphic Design student at SUU, expressed his delight with “Speech and Debate.” Gaillard commented, “It was awesome. I want to go see it again.”
Luckily for Gaillard, “Speech and Debate will be shown again March 1, 2, and 7 at 7:30 PM and March 9 at 2 PM. Admission for the show is free for SUU students and faculty with a valid SUU ID. Adults not affiliated with the university must purchase tickets at the price of $10 while youth would pay $5. Tickets can be purchased at the American First Credit Union Box office, at the door of the performance, or at suu.edu/pva.
Story by: Tomas D’Anella
tdanella73@gmail.com
Photo by: Tomas D’Anella
