Student create plays, highlight relationships

The Foreplays event was presented on March 13 during Gender Awareness Week in the Kassab Recital Hall where students were invited to see plays written by FMU students meant to educate through romantic themes.

Professors of English John Tuttle and Pamela Rooks introduced the event. Rooks informed audience members about Gender Awareness Week and future events which would approach topics similar to ones addressed by the plays.

Writer and director of “Wish You Were Here,” Jackie Wilcox said she wrote the play to highlight the struggles people have with moving on from a person they once cared about.

Anna Patton, writer of “I Like It Sweet,” said she wrote a play centered on domestic violence.

“I think it is important for students to remember that not all love is good love,” Patton said. “If your partner is cheating or abusive, you shouldn’t stay. There’s no excuse for that behavior. Many people say, ‘It won’t happen to me,’ but then it does and they are lost.”

Garrett Fuller, writer of “A Ship to Wreck,” said he had more than one reason to write a play for this event.

“I’m in Dr. Tuttle’s playwright class, but that’s not entirely the reason I love writing,” Fuller said. “The idea of love and relationship was the theme of the plays, and the intent was for the play to be relatable for college students.”

Fuller said he hoped students could learn a lot from his play about the problems college students face and how to overcome them.

Jake Pack, junior history major and actor in “I Like It Sweet,” said this is not the first time he participated in this event and that it probably won’t be the last time.

“I’ve acted in a few plays and it’s interesting to hear the different messages that come through,” Pack said. “My character in this play was very arrogant and proud and it was fun getting to play that out. I end up dying and the good guys win in the end. To me, that really gets across the message of domestic abuse being a consequential action.”

Alexis Haley, junior education major, said the play brought a lot of different perspectives on love and relationships.

“All of the plays were all very unique and they each gave a different perspective on relationships in general,” Haley said.

After introductions from Tuttle and Rooks, the first play “Not About Socks,” written and directed by Shari Tingle, began. FMU students Kylie Cracknell and Rebecca Perkins performed the play. Between the plays, Rachel Spear, assistant professor of English and coordinator of English composition, gave brief talks about the background of the event.

“I Like It Sweet,” written by Anna Patton and directed by Jon Tuttle, was the second play of the evening. The cast of “I Like It Sweet” included Dani Isgett, Jake Pack and Melissa Gragg. Jackie Wilcox wrote and directed the third play, “Wish You Were Here.” The cast of “Wish You Were Here” included Noah Pace, Sabrina Gilbertson and Ashley Krause. The final play of the event was “A Ship to Wreck,” written by Garrett Fuller and directed by Rachel Spear. The cast of “A Ship to Wreck” included Lauren Mansey and Morgan Calcutt.

After the final play, refreshments were served for the cast members, writers, directors and audience members to mingle and discuss the plays.