Tag Archive for: Theatre Arts

Two comedies in February for SOU Theatre

SOU Theatre is back: Two comedies open this month

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Live performances from the SOU Theatre Program will return from a COVID-19 hiatus with plenty of laughs in a pair of February comedies: “The Thanksgiving Play” by Larissa FastHorse and “The Servant of Two Masters” by Carlo Goldini.

The first of the two winter term productions, “The Thanksgiving Play,” will open with an 8 p.m. performance on Thursday, Feb. 17, in the SOU Theatre Building’s Black Box Theatre, at 491 S. Mountain Ave., in Ashland. Additional performances will be at 8 p.m. on Feb. 18 and 19, and Feb. 24 through 26; and 2 p.m. on Feb. 26 and 27.

There will be limited seating, so those interested in attending are encouraged to contact the Oregon Center for the Arts Box Office early to reserve seats.

The political satire is directed by Steven Sapp and features a cast of four SOU students: Nate Walker, Jodie Chapin, Jade Krische and Andrew Chvatal. What could go wrong when three bleeding-heart liberals undertake to mount a woke Thanksgiving play? Just about everything in Larissa FastHorse’s hilarious satire of clueless white people straining to be politically correct.

The second production – which will overlap the first – is a zany farce in which a perpetually famished lackey schemes to double his wages by serving two masters simultaneously, and goes to increasingly desperate lengths to conceal his ruse. “The Servant of Two Masters” is directed by Brendan McMahon, an assistant professor of theatre at SOU, and features student actors Aleeyah Enriquez, AnaLea Varni, Chloe Boyan, Hayley Kennen, Jennie Babisch, John Price, Keigin Tosh, Kyler Deanda, Sam Whitler, Nicole Villavicencio, Thilini Dissanayake and Tim Turner.

The show opens with an 8 p.m. performance on Thursday, Feb. 24, in the Theatre Building’s Main Stage Theatre. Additional performances will be at 8 p.m. on Feb. 25 and 26, and March 3 through 5; and 2 p.m. on March 5 and 6.

Both of the comedies will have reserved seating; please contact the OCA Box Office early at (541) 552-6348 or via email at boxoffice@sou.edu to reserve seats.

SOU COVID-19 POLICY: All event attendees must show proof of vaccination card (actual card, or photo of it on your phone) OR a negative COVID-19 Test (from a health center, hospital or doctor’s office) within 48 hours of the performance date for admission at the door. Thank you for adhering to our policy so we can keep our students, faculty, staff, patrons and performers safe!

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SOU professor awarded Fulbright scholarship to study in Ireland

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NEWS RELEASE (available online at https://goo.gl/VfZ695)
(Ashland, Ore.) — Eric Levin, a professor and director of theatre arts at Southern Oregon University, has been awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study in Ireland during the 2017-18 academic year. He will use the grant to teach for a semester at the University of Ireland in Galway, and to participate in that university’s international Eugene O’Neill Conference.

Eric Levin


Fulbrights are among the most prestigious scholarships in academia, and Levin’s award is the first for an SOU faculty member in four years.
“I was pleased and surprised to receive this honor,” Levin said. “In addition to learning about Irish university programs and curriculum, I also hope to create ties with the University of Ireland in Galway and other universities as well as professional theatres.”
Levin, who has been an SOU faculty member for 12 years, directs the university’s Master of Theatre Studies Program for theatre teachers. He also teaches theatre literature and foundational courses.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in dramatic arts from the University of California, a master’s degree in theatre from Western Oregon University and a doctorate in theatre arts from the University of Oregon. He previously served as an assistant professor of theatre at Dickinson State University in North Dakota, an adjunct professor at California State University-Fresno, and a part-time instructor at College of the Sequoias in Visalia, California. He has also taught secondary school in Oregon and California.
Levin’s work has appeared in publications including the Journal of American Theatre and Drama, The Eugene O’Neill Review and Theatre Research International.
His theatre experience includes set and lighting design, technical direction, acting and directing.
Levin is SOU’s 16th Fulbright Scholar. The most recent previous awardee was English Professor Diana Maltz, who used her 2013-14 scholarship at the University of Liverpool to study lifestyle aestheticism, visual culture and family identity in late Victorian and Edwardian England. SOU’s first Fulbright Scholarship was awarded to Economics Professor Byron Brown for the 1986-87 academic year, which he spent lecturing on economics at Karl Marx University in Budapest, Hungary.
Fulbright scholarships are part of a merit-based, international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It was founded by former U.S. Sen. J. William Fulbright and has awarded scholarships each year since 1948. It currently offers about 8,000 grants annually for graduate study, research, lecturing and teaching in more than 160 participating countries.
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About Southern Oregon University
Southern Oregon University provides outstanding student experiences, valued degrees, and successful graduates. SOU is known for excellence in faculty, intellectual creativity and rigor, quality and innovation in connected learning programs, and the educational benefits of its unique geographic location. SOU was the first university in Oregon—and one of the first in the nation—to offset 100 percent of its energy use with clean, renewable power. It is the first university in the nation to balance 100 percent of its water consumption. Visit sou.edu.