Issue date: 11/13/09 Section: The Verge

Junior theater major Katy Kruzic (Ariell) cowers from sophomore theater major Kirk Dulin (Prospero) during rehearsal for Shakespeare's "The Tempest" in The Theatre in Doudna Fine Arts Center. (Audrey Sawyer/The Daily Eastern News)

The Theatre Arts Department will begin showings of William Shakespeare's play "The Tempest," today at 7 p.m. in The Theatre in Doudna Fine Arts Center.

The play will also be shown on Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday at 7 p.m. Also, on Sunday the play will be shown at 2p.m.

"The Tempest" will be directed by Bill Kincaid, a Western Illinois University professor, and will feature 20 roles, filled by 19 Eastern students.

The story of "The Tempest" revolves around the play's protagonist Prospero, who uses his magical powers to raise a tempest what drives his enemies to the shores of an island that Prospero has inhabited for 12 years.

Kincaid said he was drawn to directing "The Tempest" because of Shakespeare's unique style of writing.

"When I accepted the role of directing "The Tempest," I really had to re-familiarize myself with the play. I had read the play before, but I really needed to look more in-depth into the material," Kincaid said.

"The more I began to work on the script the more I became amazed with the wonderful writing. I'm certainly thankful for this directing opportunity."

Kincaid said rehearsals have been going well, which he was impressed with considering the material was originally intended for professional, actors.

"This style of play really requires a lot of people to put in extra time and special effort and many of the members of the cast have really stepped up and done some terrific work," Kincaid said. "There is a lot to this complex play. The language is very complex, as is the case with most of Shakespeare's works, and some of the ideas are really complex, in terms of what we are trying to do with the design of the play."

Ryan McCain, mass communication major, said that the rehearsals have been going really well.

"Our director Bill Kincaid has done an excellent job with the rehearsals," McCain said. "He really has helped us build our characters, with giving us constant feedback on anything that we try. It really is all about discovering what you want to do with a certain character and what their motive is in the scene."

McCain plays the role of Ferdinand, who is the son to the King of Naples.

Mallory Stringfellow, a theatre arts major, said even though this is her first semester at Eastern, she has been pleased to get involved in a play that allows her to feel comfortable.

"This is my first real acting role and it's kind of nice to start off with a play and a director that allows you to feel comfortable in what you are doing," Stringfellow said.

Stringfellow plays the role of Gonzalo, an honest old counselor.

Neil Schneider can be reached at 581-7942 or jnschneider@eiu.edu

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