Southern Utah University’s Black Box Grant production of “The Dumb Waiter” will perform Feb. 23 and Feb. 24 at 8:00 p.m. in the Black Box Theatre in the Auditorium. Tickets are available for $5 at the Auditorium Box Office prior to showtime.
“The Dumb Waiter” by Harold Pinter is a one-act play that follows two hit men as they wait for their next assignment. By nature of being a one-act play, it has a running time of only 30 to 45 minutes, but the short runtime adds to the suspense.
“The structure of the play itself is set up to keep you always on the edge of your seat and you don’t know what’s going to happen,” said actor and producer Jarod Lewis, who plays Ben.
In addition to acting in and producing the show, Lewis also served as the set designer alongside his co-star, Ethan William Akester.
“[I have enjoyed] being a part of every single part of the process all the way from building the set to the rehearsals and every aspect of theater thus far,” said Akester, who portrays Gus.
Another unique aspect of the play is that the cast is made up of just two actors.
“It’s a two-man show,” said director Ali Damavandi. “The two characters really contrast each other. It’s not boring just having the same two people.”
The play is described as an absurdist comedy, which audience members may find unusual.
“The whole show kind of teeters a line between comedic and grotesque,” said Lewis.
The play ends in an unusual fashion, and the whole team expressed excitement at sharing that moment with an audience.
“I think the audience will really, really like [the ending moment]. We’ve done something really, really cool with lighting, and I think the imagery is really good,” said Akester. “The build-up will be very rewarding.”
Story by: Gracie Butterfield
accent@suunews.net
Photos courtesy of Jarod Lewis
