NIC theatre dept. presents a different take on musical theatre

The theatre department took musical theatre to a whole new level with this semester’s performances of “Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread” by David Ives and “SYM” by Gerard Mathes.

“It’s a whole different language from what you’re expecting to see in the theatre,” said Joe Jacoby, director of “Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread.”

Both of the abstract performances revolved around music and movement and, while having no actual plot or storyline, the philosophical meaning of the performances were left up to the audience’s imagination.

Only four actors on stage performing the short piece “Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread”

“Normally you’ve got dialogue and plot, and you have an idea of where you’re going,” said Jacoby. “Here, the students have no idea what it’s going to look like, and we don’t completely know either, so we’re really discovering the play through the rehearsal process.”

The first piece performed, “Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread,” was meant to parody the Philip Glass’s composing style. Joe Jacoby described his work as a repetitive sound that comes from deconstructing different note patterns and then putting the notes back together in unusual ways.

In the skit, four actors act out a simple exchange of dialogue with a man buying a loaf of bread from a baker, and a woman who talks to her friend about how she recognizes the man buying bread. Then the words used in these exchanges, and even syllables of the words, are taken apart and reordered to create a nonsensical but melodic sequence.

“SYM,” a series of abstract scenes depicting creation from the perspectives of science and religion, philosophical ideas, the inspiration of classic pieces of art, and even the history of chess.

Actors in “SYM” moving as though they are chess pieces

Joe Jacoby said that doing this kind of piece is always sort of experimental.

“You really risk falling flat on your face,” he said.

Although some viewers were able to put meaning behind the pieces, others had a harder time working through the abstract thoughts presented.

“I would consider myself a pretty creative person but I have no idea what any of that was supposed to mean.”, said Annie Larrondo, a first-year student majoring in architecture, about Saturday’s final performance. “It was confusing, but it was still fun to watch everyone singing and dancing around; some of the scenes were quite mesmerizing.”

Though this sort of piece might not resonate with everyone who watches it, it allows the actors and everyone else working on it to be as creative as they want to be, free from the pressures of satisfying the people in the audience.

Jacoby said, “It’s fair not to have a good time with a piece like this because it’s so different but the people who would be able to enjoy this kind of show were able to join the actors on that journey.”